Geezer's Long March Toward the Elite Sneaking Up On the Finish Line

[Meshuggah]

Send DB my best wishes, I know how painful Gout is. It has hit me in the big toes, and it literally felt like someone smashed them with a sledgehammer.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Thank you Shug. I know she'll appreciate it.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Quick in and out at the gym today. A GXP on the elliptical that ran 16 minutes burning 142 calories with an average HR of 122 bpm @ 80% of MHR and a peak of 136 bpm.

Got the double ended speed bag and will be meeting with the Karate guy tomorrow to discuss where to hang it in the room we share. Since that room is also shared with a women's morning exercise class, we have to think of what might upset them as well. Since Dave (the re-christened BoB I bought for us) already spooked their tender sensibilities. Also, I found an excellent book titled Fight Like a Physicist. It breaks down how movement and balance in the martial arts act in the world much in the same way SS has broken down the lifts. Some very interesting and revealing things so far, and I am only on page 30.

[Mark E. Hurling]

IMG_20161115_0001.jpg

Back to a tricky balancing act with teaching tonight. G is a new blue belt 1st degree to teach and trying to evaluate the progress of K and E on their own techniques. All at the same time fielding what-if questions about counters and reality. I asked for their take on Saturday for any adjustments in future such events and learned they wanted a bigger role in the demonstrations and hands on work. Fair enough. Noted and will do next time. It's curious to me as how the blue belt 1st degree techniques seem easier to teach and learn than the blue belt techniques. A little more thought is necessary, but I think that maybe this is because no really small movement details are being broken ground in this belt. New strikes, to be sure. New methods of entry also. But those are pretty easy to teach and to learn.

In my errands, I found a new bright flashlight that is near perfect for self defense. It's 5"-6" long and a AAA light, which makes it very good as a yawara or kubotan. The body is aircraft aluminum and so very hard with good penetration of muscle tissue to hit nerve points and painful bone strikes. The length makes it protrude an inch on each end from even my wide hand, so even better still. The light is not as bright as some of the really high powered ones, but still bright enough to provoke a startle reflex and a momentary blue spot in the eyes that can frizzle the vision just long enough for advantage.

Tonight's festivities burned 401 calories with an average HR of 98 bpm @ 68% of MHR and a peak of 116 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

The morning's activities consisted of rounds of heavy and speed bag work, faster and longer, arms only SciFit and rower, medicine ball tosses, and stretching. This ran 40 minutes burning 268 calories with an average HR of 107 bpm @ 68% of MHR and a peak of 116 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Today's plan was to lift, but the mysterious pain in my feet, the left one this time started up yesterday and persisted into this morning. So, shift the lifting until tomorrow, because I teach Jujitsu tonight. Also minimize foot loading with things like the seated arm and leg action on the SciFit, the rower, medicine ball tosses, and stretching. I kept the session short and easy, 31 minutes burning 156 calories with an average HR of 95 bpm @ 62% of MHR and a peak of 106 bpm.

[Mark E. Hurling]

IMG_20161115_0001.jpg

The people from Rainbow Cafe dropped an email asking if the Karate guy and I could fill in at the Girlsworld Expo this Sunday. The scheduled outfit bailed at the last minute. So, yeah, even if on short notice. Now to see if I could rustle up some assistance. Again. On short notice.

K and E showed and both seemed like they could get there. Self defense for women, exactly in my wheelhouse. I've been working a specific curriculum for years now, and looking for the opportunity to roll it out in the real world. So we flashed through some finger bar and right angle hold techniques that present themselves as counters that women of any age can get by males who won't take no for an answer. Gropes to the chest, thigh, and buttocks. Those counters hurt like Hell. Especially the finger bars. In addition to some of the grabs and bear hugs and other techniques we taught at the Rainbow Cafe last weekend.

Then I ran them through the Blue Belt techniques. Sadly, E has gotten forgetful and rusty since he missed a number of sessions. But he'll get there. K is still overcoming his stiff tin man creaks from Karate, but improving.

The session burned 253 calories with an average HR of 89 bpm @ 58% of MHR and a peak of 106 bpm. LISS in the lower end of the scale, but that's why I did some other stuff earlier this morning.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Hip Belt Squat: Sets of 5, 335-345-355.

Incline Press: Sets of 5, 165-170-175.

Hammer High Row: Sets of 5, 290-300-305.

Looks like I'm finally working my way back up from my months long lifting malaise. So, YAY!

Session was 48 minutes long burning 432 calories with an average HR of 117 bpm @ 76 of MHR and a peak of 136 bpm.

OTOH, when it rains it pours.

First, I'm running on a fast track to get ready for the Girlsworld Expo. This will be much different and will include seated techniques to painfully (for the groper) counter any unwanted touching in a car, theater, office, or classroom. Lotta planning and hoping I'll get some help from my students, but short notice, other fish to fry, and I understand. This could be a big opportunity for reaching out to the audience I always wanted and maybe getting a traveling road show together.

Second, our refrigerator decided to either die or get anemia and quit cooling. So I have been bagging and hauling out spoiled food all morning too. No appliance repair available until Monday.

Ah, life and it's impositions on lifting.

[Mark E. Hurling]

IMG_20161115_0001.jpg

Loooong day at the Expo. We did a demo on stage of counters to gropes and grabs and then spent the afternoon of teaching small groups the same techniques along with escapes. The Karate guy would round up some girls and then cycle them through his stuff and pass them on to us. Some good girls with a lot of spirit today. It was good to be able to help them learn to be safe and confident.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Odds and ends today. Rounds of speed bag, elliptical, SciFit, cable crunch, and stretching. The session ran 32 minutes burning 212 calories and ended up being more intense than I was planning so I cut it a little short. Average HR was 116 bpm @ 76% of MHR and a peak of 126 bpm.