Business and/or Fun?

Last week's training was interesting!  I had one last thing to do, ending a 6 week strength and conditioning cycle that interfered more with my GS training that I had anticipated and was reprimanded in the nicest of ways by my coach on Saturday......a stern talking to about snatching 223 16kg reps in 10 minutes....actually it wasn't "stern", it was "disappointing", which is WAY worse.

As I tried to explain, it was connected to another training goal, and now it's over.  Plenty of time to get ready for my August Kettlebell Sport competition.  But, true to my coaches experience, and what he was concerned about was that I had torn up my hands in the last minute of that set enough to not recover and complete what was on my program for what I NEED to do for August. And to look at the big picture, the ultimate goal, which is that I will be putting my ass on that platform with the 16kg for the first time and I needed to not mess around with priorities.  Point taken, and I promise to be a good girl...as good as I can.

I did, in fact, have to back off from what was programmed for my GS training on Thursday after Tuesday, so taking all of Friday to recover I went into the gym Saturday morning feeling myself again.  The first set of the day was supposed to be a 50/50 rep (R/L, one hand switch) 14kg, 4 minute set.  No problem at all, in fact really easy.  The reps were not difficult, so I tried to focus on technique.  Most of all "laying back" on the descend.....but it all goes to hell in a hand basket when I increase the weight by 2 kg!  

Knowing I would be finishing my GS training at Juno later in the afternoon (16kg jerk) I went about the rest of the morning paying special attention to my hands and not doing stupid stuff, like swinging heavier than I needed to.

We went on to our Max Vo2 sets. 50 w/14kg.  Easy but boring...which makes them not so easy!  400 fast and quick snatches down, onto swings.

I had to start designing a "partner" swing routine scheduled to produce into a workout dvd with Jeff Sokol SFG in less than 2 weeks time...so I needed to recruit my training partners, Meg and Maribel.  Usually I have a starting point, and then I follow some simple progressions, making the workout more difficult as it goes along. The one we ended up following built up to a fairly advanced routine, but that's fine!  I needed to personally "feel" what the work to rest ratio was like in order to scale it in different levels.  So, that being said, we probably added another 700-800 swing reps in the remaining 30 minutes of our training (14kg for me).

I got another chance to work out the second partner swing workout (actually it will be the first on the dvd) in my 8:30 Intermed/Beginning class.  Love it!  I did the lesser of the swing reps, timing work to rest for my "crazies", who did more!

A strong cup of coffee.  A visit with my friend, and personal photographer, Genevieve Ross, a couple of private sessions and then my 40 minute drive up to Berkeley (Juno) to work with team "OKC"!

On the 40 minute drive up to Berkeley I kept thinking how nice it would have been to just get my jerks done first thing and be home by now.  I knew I would be kind of tired and more weak at this point of the day, and this point of the week.  But everytime I go to Juno, at a time I never ever train on my own, I think about when I have to "perform" at events like an SFG Certification when we are asked to train all day long for 3 days in a row!  Three days in a row, and now I'm bitching about having to do a 4 minute set of jerk at 12noon?  Somehow it should not be that big of a deal!

Having successful athletes to watch, in person, and having a great coach that, even with only 10 minutes of his time, offers such a wealth of feedback and corrections...was I really bitching?  

Sunday, today, completely off.  No yoga, no walking, no farmers market, just my granddaughter Sophia, molding hard boiled eggs!  I'll be ready to implement better what I learned on Saturday...and no crazy tearing up of my hands this week.  Nose to the grindstone...my sights are set for August!

The business/fun of leading swing classes, the business/fun of producing swing workouts, and the business/fun of competition.....my life is pretty darn good!




bottom picture is Genevieve Ross, me, and Judi Sagami after swing class.