Another Great review for my book!

"Thanks for the book, Sara. I finished it tonight. It was very helpful and I loved the tips for the exercises...

I really liked how you gave the "fix it" solutions for areas an individual has problems with. I haven't seen crush rows before so that is something I can incorporate into workouts now! I liked the different variations for the get-ups.....I am ALWAYS looking for variety.

You are very inspiring :) Thanks again!! "

-Hollie

A year in review

The year started off with a little domestic discovery. I made my first homemade apple pie, crust & all, and even made a cute lattice top! The peanut brittle wasn't nearly as scary as I thought it would be, either. We also started the development of Red Star Athletics in January. Derek Brigham developed my logo, I found a distributor for my dvd, and finished-up my first kettlebell/Z-Health instructional book. We had official mugs, magnets, and Red Star t-shirts made shortly after the logo was completed.

Near the beginning of the year we also did a little jet-setting. I met up for a girl's vacation in the Caribbean with my mom, aunts, and cousins. Then Mike & I met his oldest brother & his wife in Vegas before we hopped down to SoCal to visit his other brother & his family. I was able to squeeze is two fantastic workshops then as well; one in Venice & one in Brea.

Then I ventured into organic gardening. I was impressed that my okra & tomatoes grew like crazy but was rather disappointed when my cucumbers only grew massive vines and one measly cucumber. I planted herbs & carrots, and unfortunately I pulled up itty-bitty baby carrots thinking they were parsley :( I'll have to try them again next year. Somewhere between Miami, the Caribbean, Vegas, & SoCal, I went to Phoenix for my second round of Z-Health T-Phase, Mike and I went to Eastern Carolina University to become certified Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) Instructors, and we made it to a rockin Dave Matthew's Band concert in Raleigh. I also did a workshop in Virginia Beach and Wilmington at some point & Mike & I lead our first RAD teaching weekend...

In May Mike & I ventured to Denmark to teach at the RKC. We both fell in love with Denmark, the food, and its super-nice people. I was privileged to lead a group of capable, able, and willing to learn Italians at the RKC, making the trip that much more memorable. June saw a round of Z-Health I-Phase certification as well as teaching at the RKC II in St. Paul.

By July, Mike's unit had a new commander as the last one PCS'd to New Mexico. Mike and I went to the advanced Rape Aggression Defense certification in Virginia and I again headed to St. Paul, this time to assist at the Z-Health Essential Secrets of Strength workshop. Things slowed down a bit in August, by started off with my favorite workshop as of yet, in PA with fellow RKC Phil Scarito. In September I had another great workshop in Venice when we went out to visit Mike's family again. We squeezed in a Killers concert in Santa Barbara and a Dave Matthews concert in...I can't remember now :p September also saw a really fun Air Force Ball held at the Fort Bragg officers' Club with our first meeting of the All-American Airborne Chorus. Mike & I also taught our second successful RAD workshop on Pope this month.

Things picked up again in October, starting with a workshop in Brea with super-cool & together fellow RKC Marcus Martinez as well as a workshop in NorCal at Chico, which parlayed into a visit with my father-in-law. He and I had a grand bonding adventure up through old RailRoad country. That trip was cut just short when we found out Mike was deploying. However, the following weekend he & I taught another RAD class on Pope. Unfortunately, Mike's great-uncle Johnnie, a Bronze Star and Purple Heart recipient (amongst many other honorable medals) of the Vietnam war passed in October.

At the beginning of November Mike accompanied me to Gainesville Florida for another workshop and it was followed-up with a week's visit from his folks. We celebrated Thanksgiving & Christmas with all the fixin's and I even put up the tree. I think it was around this time that we got a new Nikon that takes kick-ass photos. So we started taking pictures of EVERYTHING and all the pics came out so cool! At the end of the month we made a quick visit to Mike's grandparent's in Arkansas.

So that brings us to December. Wrapping-up last minute Z-Health Master Trainer Internship study and projects as well as all the holiday festivities has kept me plenty busy. And in other, super-cool good news, Mike's brother Steve made Drill Instructor!

Another year is already on the horizon, within touching distance in fact. It's said that the older you get, the faster the years roll by, I believe it! 2010 is already solidly planned through July.

The more clear, and measurable your objectives (see: New year's Resolutions) are, the more likely you are to succeed. Any good road trip needs a solid road map, change is no different. Make a solid road map of what you wish to accomplish and change this year, with dates and avenues to reach your goals. Keep in mind that YOU are in control of your change! The better you educate and prepare yourself for change, the more successful you will be at achieving it!

Wanna know about muscles?

Check out this site: http://www.ptcentral.com/muscles/
Incredible!

Sara Cheatham: "Power & Precision"

Rated 10 out of 10

"Sara Cheatham is highly skilled and leads training of remarkable technical detail. She is passionate about training and offers her expertise without reservation. While on a short temporary assignment to Nellis Air Force Base, I was introduced to Kettlebell training because Sara Cheatham volunteered to lead our unit PT weekly.

"Even though I only trained for a few sessions, Sara's level of instruction, attention to precision and outstanding leadership instilled a sense of passion for Kettlebell training that has stayed with me through deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, as well as trips to other parts unknown. Wherever I go, there's a Kettlebell in my field gear.

"Luckily, Sara has started producing high quality instructional DVD's so I can keep up with her training from remote locations. I'm truly impressed with "Strength by Sara: How to perfect hardstyle kettlebell principles using Z-health concepts". It's the unparalleled level of instruction one can expect from Sara Cheatham captured on video for personal training, whenever and wherever...it's a must have for any serious student of Kettlebells."

Tim H. - Florida

Another Year, Another Empty Promise...

OR NOT! Make this New Year's Resolution stick:

Knowledge is Power!

Get my DVD and start off SMART this year!

My DVD is racked and stacked with only the best!
Z-Health Joint Mobility: A Toe to Head warm-up

Kettlebell swing

Kettlebell clean

Kettlebell Military Press

Kettlebell Contra-lateral Press

Bottoms-up clean

Kneeling In-line lunge press

Kettlebell Snatch

Lunge style Get-up

Overhead Squat style Get-up

Kettlebell Front Squat

Kickstand Lunge

Windmill progression

2-hands Anyhow

Plank-style Bear Crawl

Renegade Row

One-legged Deadlift

PLUS:

Two workouts combining the drills above

Z-Health Joint Mobility Cool-down *including visual drills

My dvd will not only help you gain strength and stamina by learning to technically do kettlebell drills correctly, but by combining kettlebell drills with Z-Health mobility you will neurologically rewire poor movement habits...teaching your body to naturally move efficiently. This means you do not have to train in pain one second longer!

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The Box Gym Beat Down- Again.

I don't know why I continue to be surprised by die-hard's of box-gyms. Box Gyms meaning the cookie-cutter, thoughtlessly thrown together warehouse facilities with ridiculous "machines," cable apparatus, squat racks who's sole purpose is biceps curls, monthly memberships, and initiation fees (gag). Even more surprising to me is the insane amount of money people "invest," or rather waste on home-gyms. I've seen my fair share of rooms full of useless chrome and cables. I leave shaking my head and thinking, all you need is one or two kettlebells (which are an incredible fraction of the cost and weight of your super-cool souped up waste of space). But alas, this is America where more is more and bigger is better (again- insert gag).

What are these machines really doing to the bodies that use them? Well, considering that you now know that you always (without fail) get better at EXACTLY what you do (SAID Principle), those machines are teaching how to do those machines better. Sitting complacently on a machine going through the limited motions as described and depicted by the pictures ON the machine certainly prepares you for daily tasks such as walking, running, squatting, bending, turning, tilting, and applied torque, with limbs, torso, head, and eyes in countless varying positions. (Note heavy sarcasm in previous sentence.)

I had a friend and client recently tell me that when she went in for a prenatal appointment the doctor asked her what she was doing in the way of working out. (Mind you, my friend has gotten in BETTER shape since becoming pregnant.) Needless to say her doc was clueless when she said "kettlebells" were her means of conditioning. Without knowing a thing about kettlebells or how I train my clients, her doctor promptly advised her to "stop squatting." Hmmm. Think of those implications, because Heaven forbid she have to squat before, during, or after her pregnancy. Furthermore, rather than understanding the benefits of kettlebell training or contacting me, the doc says "Stop-altogether. No further questions." Awesome. Because how many times have I heard about a fat doc telling a pregnant woman to watch her weight? Or a fat, smoking doc telling a patient they're headed for heart failure and diabetes if they don't start working out and eating right?

What is the applicability of my friend's recent run-in with yet another ignorant "professional?" Unfortunately, "traditional" western/bodybuilding-based gym training and the weekend/one-day certified personal trainers, basically blindly guiding unsuspecting patrons through so-called workouts (strength, conditioning, and functional training, mind-you ;)) does more harm and damage in the short and long run than true functional training.

"Sara you've got it all wrong! I frequent a gym. But I'm not a bodybuilder and I do NOT train as a body builder. My trainer is smarter than the average bear" you say. I beg to differ. When and where did this wave of ignorance-excuse me- current training method begin? Some say the 1970's, 80's, and maybe as far back as the 60's. At most this type of training has been in effect for fifty years. In the span of human-kind, this is hardly a drop in the bucket. Granted we have better ways of measuring mortality and morbidity than even fifty years ago. But let's take a look at the current health of the nation: WORSE THAN EVER!!!!! (Check out the CDC for their cool map of the obesity trend http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html ). We're a fat, sick, nation- even to spite a gym across from every Starbucks. Where's the hang-up?

The story is the same: you feel fat, the new year rolls around, you decide you're really, for real, going to make this year different, you buy a gym membership for the year (because it is the cheapest option and at this point you just know you're going to go the entire year- every. single. day!), you hire a personal trainer, they cycle you through the pre-determined machine placement and cookie-cutter workout, with the same sets, reps, time, and weight every day, and never write anything down. How many ways does this defy human-nature? It's not novel. It's not progressive. It's not individualized. That was a good way to spend a few months salary. You learned nothing, you accomplished nothing, you're left frustrated, and empty pocket-ed. You were robbed by the gym, its manager, and the trainer. Your goals fell on deaf ears, your money fell into deep pockets, and YOU'RE STILL FAT and unhappy.

The answer isn't kettlebell training alone. It's not Crossfit, or a fancy home-gym, or gym membership, or a supportive spouse, or an easy home life, or pre-made home-delivered meals. What's the answer? You. And I'll go out on a limb here (not really) and say education. Paying someone or for something doesn't guarantee YOUR success. Educating yourself, being persistent, being present in YOUR life every day, and continuing education are the keys. Remember those old "The more you know" public service announcements? They were hokie, but basically true. The more you know, the more you invest in yourself, don't cut corners, the more fulfillment you will find, the more things will start falling into place. Success breeds success. Failure breeds failure. If you're going to set-up 2010 the same way you went into 2009, don't expect different results.

Intuition

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I got these delicious lollies as a part of a Christmas gift from some friends. If you can get them, you should! When it comes to candy, I've been known to have a bit of a sweet tooth. Eating these is practically guilt-free! ;)

"Intuition [is]...a potent form of inner wisdom, not mediated by the rational mind. Accessible to us all, it's a still, small voice inside. It's an unflinching truth teller committed to our well-being." Judith Orloff, M.D.

Intuition is all too often underestimated. Like most natural-born gifts, it is taken for granted and shoved in the back of our minds for something "better," something more rational and logical. More and more I've been appreciating the power of intuition.

I may be considered by most to be paranoid and over-cautious. I guess if you're a 6-foot-4, 200-plus pound, ex-college football lineman, and current military cop, you can afford a bit more elbow room than a 5-foot-2, 100-plus pound, ex-high school cheerleader...female.

Since my husband and I started teaching women's rape defense classes, and have consequently gone through more extensive education channels to better understand the nature of rape, why, how, and where it occurs, as well as the after-math, we both have gained a far greater appreciation for my "paranoia." Locking the car doors at a stop light is second-nature for me (the survival/threat bulb lights up and the finger instantaneously goes to the "lock" button). Something perhaps a less-vulnerable type may not even get a glint or flicker from the survival light bulb. Not to say women are vulnerable and weak and blah blah blah more PC terms...No regardless of who you are, that light bulb snaps on when it needs to. That light is intuition. It truly is our safety-net...our survival switch.

When you get that gut feeling, de ja vu, or chill on the back of your neck about a situation or a person, even if you've been to that place and with that person many a time before, DON'T IGNORE that feeling!!!!!!!!! You ARE NOT crazy, you are not hyper-sensitive, you are not overly cautious. You're protecting yourself! You're prolonging your survival. You're preserving your life. Don't ignore it. Don't shrug it off. However your logical mind tries to rationalize and talk you out of what your intuition is lighting up to, follow your intuition! What will it hurt? Nothing. Maybe you take a few extra seconds to get to the store front because you avoided that lingering, leering creep. (Just be sure you eyeball him to let him know you're onto him as you do. Creeps hate eye contact.) ;)


Don't feel bad for potentially hurting a strangers feelings because you choose to wait for the next elevator. If they're pushy, it's all the more reason to wait for the next one, or go to another. Don't risk your safety, your life, your future plans for the sake of someone's feeling that you don't know, barely know, or wish you didn't know.

Upon recollection, many survivors of violent acts recount that they had a bad feeling, knew something wasn't right but couldn't put their finger on it, things that seemed irrational at the time. It's perfectly rational to try to prolong and preserve your well being. You're number one. I don't care if you have kids, ailing parents, or a needy husband or wife. Your quality of life comes first!!! Without that you have less to give your parents, kids, and spouse. You are less than yourself when you give up something you truly care about or for, and willingly give it to a stranger (lest I remind you that this of which you care for is your health and safety).


In some cases, survival will require you to give up a little of yourself. Don't lose hope and don't blame yourself. Some worthless sack of sh*t trying to assert himself by bullying you has nothing to do with you and everything to do with that creepazoid being a weak, pathetic, piece of slithering slime, that deserves a long stint in the "gen. pop" of the slammer where everyone knows he's a wife-beater or baby killer, whether he really is or not. :)


Listening to intuition can of course, be less "dramatic" that physical, emotional, spiritual preservation. It can be "that feeling" to move to another area, find another career, ditch the loser, find new friends...it can feel like a calling, nagging sensation to do different...


Remember that everything is a skill. Although you've been hushing your intuition for years, you can reverse the effects by staying open to those safety-preserving thoughts and nagging "feelings," by acting on them one thought at a time. Like anything, the more you do it, the better you get at it, and the easier it becomes...the more accessible it becomes. Following intuition isn't psycho-babble. It's your innate ability to find fulfillment, satisfaction, success, clarity, and renewal. Don't keep shrugging it off because it's "free...." in actuality, intuition is quite invaluable.

Photo Catch-up

P365:12-Fayetteville Christmas Parade 2009P365:11-Christmas present from mom, wrapped and all!

P365:10-Finishing the day with Dr. Cox

I haven't' blogged in a few days, but I have been staying super-busy. Thursday was a full day, and I'd hope to get a picture of the PT session I observed, but I forgot my camera! :/ But I did spend the evening watching Scrubs thanks to Netflicks. We don't have cable, so I haven't seen season 8 until now. Season 7 was kind of a snore-fest, so I was glad to see them back to their old ways with season 8. Yesterday was a brunch, Christmas shopping, dinner with friends, and then seeing a Christmas Carol at the Theater downtown because a friend was in it! She did great, and I thought we got a good group shot afterward, but for some reason it's not showing up one my memory card:(. So the photo for yesterday is a gift my mom sent that was ordered through Amazon. I was impressed that it came wrapped and with a cute little card attached. This morning right after kettlebell class, I went downtown again with another friend to check out the Christmas parade. Who knew there were so many schools and princess? And why do strangers think they can talk to me like they know me...like creepy strangers?

Why your body looks & moves the way it does

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Over-the-Top-Christmas bash with Pope Spouses' Club

You only have yourself to thank for your current physical state. Sure, genetics were your template, but your movement patterns and daily living habits have had many repetitions and years of solidifying into your current state. This is known as Wolf's law- yep an actual LAW, not a theory!

What's Wolf's Law? It basically means that your bones have adapted to how you move in order to best support you and your movement patterns. Those bunions, maybe genetic... but reinforced by poor foot wear and perhaps some knock-kneed-ness have become a painful part of your reality.

Of course we all know the most obvious example of Wolf's Law is bone solidification. Take an elderly woman that hasn't been under a squat rack since she was in her thirties and compare her bone mineral density to that of her 30-something self. The DEXA scanner will show you her 30-year-old squatting bones were a lot more solid than her fragile un-loaded-in-a-looooong-time bones. Same woman, but her structure adapted to her movement needs. You've heard and seen this before in my old blog posts, the SAID principle! So yes, Wolf's Law is the SAID principle in action.

Davis's Law is the soft-tissue counterpart to Wolf's Law... Meaning things like muscle adapt to how they're needed. Muscles atrophy when they aren't used and hypertrophy when they are used.

These are pretty basic principles, but they do explain away a lot of belly-aching. I'm too fat, I'm too weak, I have bad genetics. I beg to differ. You bought into the load of crap that you're born with what your born with. That's like saying you grew up in the projects and that's where you'll stay because that was the hand you were dealt. I don't think so. You want to live somewhere different? You want a new life, new friends, a new body? Hello!?! Step out of the habits you've been immersing yourself in for decades and do something different.

Like the quote from Vanilla Sky, "Every passing moment is a chance to turn it all around." You just have to find the courage to take the first step and the determination to take that same step day-after-day-after-day...just like your current habits...only you're forming NEW ones! Sounds simple, but I admit is difficult. No one is more in control of you than you. Start laying down new habits now and you could have a new you by this time next year, or maybe even next month. Just stick to your convictions.

Another one from the All-American boys at the Pope Christmas tree lighting last Friday. They were singing: "If my chute don't open wide. I got a reserve by by side." I think you can YouTube it...

Closet Space

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You would think it's spring around here with as much as I've been de-junking, cleaning, and re-arranging the house. I tackled the spare room and training room and their closets today. I did have to move some spare room stuff into the training room, but it all fit together like a puzzle in the end. And with as much as I travel for training, it kind of makes sense for the suitcases to be in the training room closet ;)

I'm always reminded of Brad Pitt's line from Fight Club, "The stuff you own ends up owning you" when I clear the clutter. Do I really need five suitcases and four carry-ons? No, not really. But that last time we moved across the country they sure did come in handy. I guess the good thing about packing up, moving, and un-packing every two to five years is, you can keep track of how much stuff you accumulate....not that we're planning a move anytime soon. But I do like to keep things to a minimum juuust in case ;) It gets seriously annoying unpacking that ten-thousandth candle holder for the thirteenth time. Needless to say, the base library, Thrift Store, and base kennels, get lots of unnecessary Cheatham goods. If it's just sitting in the closet, unused, isn't it better to let someone else get use of it?

Moving season on base is like a free-for-all. Those aren't garage sales, that's the curb on trash day! People leave behind some nice finds. If you manage to beat the old-folks to the freebies (which means getting up at the crack of dawn, you can get lots of goodies for free...Of course it's a cycle because you in turn leave it behind for someone else to nab for free. :) Grills, tables & chairs, sofas, recliners, vacuums, loads of toys, bikes, entertainment centers, beds....all in good condition. Someone just wanted to get new at their next assignment. You could easily furnish a house with all the furniture left behind during PCS season! If you manage to time it right, it wouldn't look like a frat house, either :p

One week down

Project 365 makes it to its one week anniversary!

With Christmas on everyone's lips and parties galore, I thought a photo of our family tree would be appropriate. Mike has a GI Joe tree, I have an Oz tree, and then we have the big(ger) more traditional tree. At Nellis I would wait for Trees for Troops to come, but I haven't heard of them coming to Bragg. So I bought a little one on sale earlier in the season. It's been up since two weeks prior to Thanksgiving. Mike's parent's were here then and we weren't certain if Mike would be home for Christmas this year. So up it went-right away!

It's bird themed in case you couldn't figure that one out ;) The ornaments come from all over the country. The peacock feathers are actually from our old "pet" peacock that wandered our farm on Bartley's Huckleberry Hill back in the 80's, and the "angle" on the top is from the Mystere gift shop...I bought her after my third viewing of the show, when my Canadian friend Tamara came to visit me in Vegas. It doesn't really match, but she's cute and has great memories connected to her.

P.S. If you click on the picture it makes it much bigger and you can sort-of make out our Susan B. Anthony flag in the refection of the gold ball near the top of the tree. :)

St Nick Project

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For the past few years the Pope Spouses' Association has delivered goodie bags to the some 400 airmen in the dorms around the holidays. They get coupons, candy, water bottles, pens, pencils, monster drinks, soups, hand sanitizer, and more. We came across some stinky rooms, cute rooms, and everything in between, but I thought this was pretty funny. That's our goodie bag that we put on the door knob, but those keys...not ours. It looks like someone may have had a long night...

A good scare & A decade comes to a close

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Unfortunately I left our good Nikon at the Major's house after the Christmas tree lighting ceremony last night. And like most Saturday's I teach class then kick back....so what to take a photo of on a "nothing day?" I thought a picture of the moon would be cool, but again, the Nikon...:( I thought I'd still give it a try with the easy share. But when I peeped out the peep-hole before heading out to check out the moon, I freaked myself out because the hole was covered by the "wreath." It totally looked like someone's finger was covering the hole! It didn't help that I heard what sounded like our screen door opening right before I looked out. Surprise, I'm a scaredy cat :)

Entertainment weekly also came today. When we get it, I read it cover-to-cover then immediately recycle it (love their bulls eye at the end- so right on! and can I get a what-what for Steven King's column this month...at least the intro?). Anyway, today they featured books, movies, and events from the past decade. It got me to thinking of where I was some 10 years ago in the year 2000...

I was living in Rogers, Arkansas finishing up Community College and leaving my job as a sales associate and potential "key holder" (which means managerial duties but associate pay) at Maurice's in the ever-so-up-town Dixieland mall (gag). That fall I'd be heading down to Little Rock to start my Bachelor's. (In what? I had no clue). There were some shuffles and bumps because I really thought physical therapy was for me. I very quickly realized it was in fact, not, nor was the University of Central Arkansas or the drive from Little Rock to Conway. I was prepared to head back to Rogers/Bentonville to go back to CC for a nursing degree. Why nursing? They had a good program and I could be finished before the time it would take me to get a Bachelor's. Plus I could go back to living at home with dad. :)

My uncle introduced me to the University of Little Rock (which before that fateful drive I had not known of). I sat down with an advisor that asked me what I liked and slid me into the Health Sciences program. What did I tell him? That I liked science but not math :) Health Sciences really was a nice fit. I worked at Abercrombie for the length of a blink of an eye (creepy mall, loud music, and "try not to help the customers" was not my bag).

So I ended up starting school at UALR, living with my aunt & uncle and continuing a long-distance relationship with Mike..who was in??? Joplin? Pensacola? Russleville? I barely remember where I was...Anyway, here is Mike and I ten years ago, December 2000. We've come a long way, baby!

Arches & Angles in movement

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Once again I couldn't choose just one photo for the day. I was on my way to the commissary and passed the Airborne School and saw these beautiful colored leaves by its sign. Then, on my way home, I stopped by a friend's house and she said they were doing a Wing Run this afternoon and people were dressing up. I thought it'd be the perfect opportunity for my project. The different squadrons ran together. The Med group (pictured here) won most spirited group. Notice their trophy is a Santa bobble-head. ;) And I notice my Doctor is a reindeer, hmmmm.... :p

Angles provide an obvious “starting point” for joint mobility. An angle is a shut-down in movement, a “tight” joint that needs mobilization, opening, and lengthening. Angles commonly occur in the thoracic and cervical spine. These areas are easily identifiable, and the thoracic is also a high pay off area, therefore it is usually a sufficient place to start mobilization. Angles, however, can occur at any joint in the body thereby contributing to the negative Arthrokenetic reflex component: “jammed joints create weak muscles.”

Arches are most commonly demonstrable in ballet dancers. They appear as long lines and smooth transitioning of movement. Arches are much stronger supports, architecturally speaking. However this is consistent with human structure as well. Arches contribute to the “open joints create strength” aspect of the Arthrokenetic reflex, or its positive aspect.

Identifying arches and angles in yourself or a client can be quite easy. Any joint that visually looks tight, unnatural, or uncomfortable should be considered an angle and focused, coached, joint mobility should be the following protocol.

"Everyone's an Athlete"

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Army Airborne All-American Chorus at today's wives social. I forgot my camera, so I asked the girl sitting next to me to e-mail me her pictures that she took with her phone. These guys seriously give me goosebumps when they sing! If you ever get the chance to see them live, you MUST! They did a mix of Christmas and their usual songs and had the room full of ladies going nuts. They sang at the Air Force ball back in September and the ladies today gave them a much rowdier ovation, with less than half the attendance of the AF ball.

Everyone is an athlete because living life itself is a sport. The movement patterns of professional sport and everyday people are similar. Everyone develops movement compensations around inefficient posture and most have loaded this ineffective mobility through strength training. Adding load to inefficient movement significantly solidifies that poor movement and posture, making it more concrete. Everyone from professional sport athletes to corporate workers have these compensations and poor movement issues (resulting in pain and injury) that can be corrected through the Z-Health movement template.

"Chase Perfection, Catch Excellence"

P365:2 Rainy day at Pope.

(Make note that you should bring in your American Flag when there are adverse weather conditions...the one here is my neighbor's.)
As a Z-Health trainer, our goal is to “chase perfection [in movement to] catch excellence.” We should move better than our clients and move effectively and efficiently because regardless of choice, the client instinctively mimics our movement. If a coach moves poorly, his clients will unintentionally follow suit. This is known as the Mirror Neuron effect.

I informally tested this mirror neuron phenomenon between two unsuspecting classes of new kettlebell students. Neither groups had worked with or seen kettlebells prior to the sessions. The first group was:

1) lectured to about how to properly perform the kettlebell swing and why it should be performed in the given fashion
2) then shown how to perform the drill
3) then performed the drill themselves
Some got it, some were a mess...

The second group was shown the drill without any explanation or instruction. I simply said this is what I want you to do. Consequently, the second group performed the kettlebell swing more accurately than the first! This is an obvious case of how powerful mirror neurons and evolutionary socialization is to humans.

If you're a trainer or work with a trainer and can't figure out why you our your client just can't quite figure something out, you should maybe look in the mirror and re-evaluate your own performance.

We mimic what we see...it is very powerful and hard-wired, you do what you see whether you want to or not. Yes, evolution embedded us with a full proof way of survival, "monkey see, monkey do." So get behind the fluid mover the next time you train. You yourself will move and perform better :) If you are the cream of the crop, get out front and stay there, you won't do yourself any favors by watching the awkward kid in class.

P365 Day 1

One of my girlfriends from Vegas is into picture taking and introduced me Project 365. The rule is, you take a photo each day for an entire year.

1 Dec seems as good of a day to start as any. This one is of a baby maple one of my friends gave me as a gift. I promplty planted it front and center of our house, to spite housing not liking it one bit :)