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Brian Copeland's
Core Fitness Newsletter

Issue #18 - 1/25/2008

1. Lessons On Life: "I Want To Be Superman!"
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2. Special Section: "Feel Good Moment"
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3. Training Tip: "How Hard Should I Stretch?"
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4. Nutritious Recipe: "Thai Chicken Salad"
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5. Denver Metro Area: "Kettlebell Classes in Aurora"
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6. HardStyle Magazine: "Download the Latest Issue Free"
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7. Hall of Achievements: "Just Can't Stop Them!"
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8. Personalized Program Design: "Tired of Not Reaching Your Goals?"
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9. Charity in Focus: "Precious Ones Outreach International"

1. Lessons On Life:
"I Want To Be Superman!"

Do you know those people who just kinda get through life? They aren't really happy, perhaps even miserable? They are ok with the status quo. They don't want to be fat but they aren't willing to work to get in-shape.

I was just discussing these types of people with my friend, client and Chiropractor, we will call him "DJ." DJ related to me how many clients he sees just want a quick solution for their aches and pains. In reality he and I both know that while Chiropractic treatments can do some wonderful things, the underlying issue usually returns because of a poor lifestyle the patient is leading.

While often times a joint may need to be put back in place or scar tissue rubbed out of a joint or limb, weaknesses caused by the injury, and that often caused the original injury, require strengthening and flexibility work. And frankly most people are not willing to do what it takes to fix it. They want someone else to do it for them.

There are those types of people who want to be average and just get by or survive life and then there are those people who watched too many superhero shows when they were a kid and think they can do anything.

I am of the latter, which are you?

Personally I have been through severe back pain, knee pain, shoulder, neck, oh heck you name it. All caused by injuries of a reckless youth. (Apparently I am NOT Superman! Although I am much smarter now.)

What allowed me to get over these pains and become stronger, more athletic and pain-free than before the injuries was the fact that I was willing to take charge and do something about healing!

Sure I went to Chiropractors, doctors and anyone else who could help me along my path to recovery. Some helped, some did not and in my pragmatic mind I kept the useful and discarded the rest.

But I digress; the bottom line comes down to are your content being average, ordinary, unfulfilled?

Even if you are pain-free and have never had back pain or whatever. Are you happy being average?

Frankly the thought of that makes me sick to my stomach. I may never be the strongest, fastest, etc. But by God I'm gonna see how far I can get! And in the process I'll become a lot stronger, faster, healthier, more athletic than the ordinary, average, "get-by-er"!

What about you?

Are you Clark Kent or Superman?

Who the heck wants to be average!?!

2. Special Section: "Feel Good Moment"

One of my clients sent this to me and I just couldn't pass it up.

You thought this stuff only happened in movies. The kid worked hard and didn't give up and he has autism! So the next time you are coming up with excuses as to why you can't exercise, compete or whatever; don't bother complaining, step up and do it.

3. Training Tip: "How Hard Should I Stretch?"

The typical person stretches way too hard which causes injury, frustration and a build up anti-athletic of scar tissue.

Most dance teachers, yoga classes, martial arts classes and personal trainers can be blamed for our misguided concepts of stretching.

The quick and dirty

When you get into a stretched position and start to feel a stretch, that is not a tight muscle but rather your stretch reflex kicking in. The stretch reflex is an automatic reflex (like touching a hot burner will make you twitch your hand away) it is something you can't control with your mind, you don't think about it, it just happens.

In fact, if you were in a coma your stretch reflex would be turned off and the doctor could put you in a full splits, put your legs behind your head, etc. Let's hope they don't do that and let's hope you don't end up in a coma for that matter.

Basically I don't care how 'tight' or 'stiff' you are, your muscles are more than flexible enough to move through their full range of motion. Except for that pesky stretch reflex.

Now the stretch reflex isn't really a bad thing. The reason baseball pitchers throw their arm back before throwing the ball is to engage the stretch reflex so they can throw harder. Here is a test... JUMP. Did you dip your knees before jumping? Why? Whether you realize it or not you dipped down before jumping because you could get a pre stretch from your stretch reflex to jump higher.

How do we get around the stretch reflex?

Well first off, you don't want to get rid of your stretch reflex all together or you wouldn't be able to jump very high or punch or kick very hard or throw a snowball at your neighbor.

When attempting to increase your flexibility there are places that you want to get flexible and other places where you do not want to get more flexible. The specifics are beyond the scope of this mini-article as they can vary by your sport. Some places on the human body are not meant to be flexible and an excess of flexibility can cause minor to severe injuries; can you say lotus pose from yoga on the knees? Ouch! Please don't attack me yoga-clan I love your breathing methods for relaxation and stretching!

Back to increasing flexibility. If you try and fight against your stretch reflex you will lose. As you push harder into the stretch the stretch reflex fires harder to keep you from stretching any further. All you do is end up tearing muscle tissue which heals with inflexible scar tissue. Sure many martial artists and dancers have gotten into a full splits this way but it was sure a painful and damaging journey and now their athletic potential is hindered by it. Worse yet they might well pay for it in their advanced years.

A better way

Get into the stretch of your choice. Seek to find a mild stretch, say 20% tension, very mild. Now breath in and hold your breath and tense the stretched muscle. You may need to hold it for a couple of seconds or up to a minute. Now completely relax the area (and your whole body for that matter) and blow out your air simultaneously.

You should now either feel a lesser stretch, say only 10% now, or you may not even feel a stretch at all anymore. Isn't learning fun?

Increase your range of motion to feel a 20% stretch again but now you are deeper in the stretch. Repeat until desired depth or until you no longer make progress. At some point, sooner or later depending on the area of the body, your body will rebel and no longer allow you to get anymore depth. Call it quits for the day as you have released your stretch reflex as much as it will allow for the day.

Much more could be said about this type of flexibility training but I'll save that for paying customers you stinking freeloader you!



Until next time, train like an athlete not a hamster!

PS. If you are watching late-night infomercials and are thinking of buying the "Ab Gizmo 3000" or "Dance Your Way to a Super Six-Pack" don't bother. Save yourself some hard earned deblunes and instead purchase my Personalized Program Design. I'll get you better results with your own body weight and you won't have to make installments on an expensive piece of crap that sits in the corner collecting dust for the next 10 years for crying out loud!

4. Nutritious Recipe: "Thai Chicken Salad"

Called "Laab Kai" in Thai, this dish bursts with flavor. Heat from Thai chilies, sour from lime juice and salty from fish sauce. It is like a circus on your tongue and it is low in fat and carbs, high in protein and healthy as heck!

Also in my quest to find a recipe for this I encountered many different ways to make it; the one I am providing is a pretty easy method but you may have to go to an Asian market to get some of the ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of ground chicken (beef or pork can be used as well)
• 1/2 cup of lime juice
• 3 tablespoons of fish sauce (nam pla)
• 1 teaspoon of galangal powder (kha pon)
• 4 - 5 shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 - 2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 3 - 4 green onions/scallions/spring onions, chopped
• Small handful of fresh torn cilantro, big pieces - use less if you are not a cilantro freak like me
• Optional - 2 tablespoons ground roasted sticky rice (separate instructions below)
• 1 - 5 teaspoons of ground red Thai chili peppers (you can substitute fresh Thai chilies chopped fine if desired)
• 15 mint leaves, torn - some very fine and some in larger pieces like halves
• 1/2 teaspoon of sugar

Making the Ground Roasted Sticky Rice:

Get glutinous sticky rice from an Asian store. Heat a skillet over medium to medium-high heat and when it's hot enough, add the raw uncooked rice grains. Stir from time to time. Some of the rice may pop like popcorn. Keep toasting till the grains turn golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Place into a mortar and grind with a pestle. Use a twisting action instead of a pounding action unless you want to pick up lots of grains of rice off of your kitchen floor. You can also use a coffee grinder instead of the mortar and pestle. Don't grind it to dust, leave it kind of rough.

Directions:

• Slice the shallots, garlic and green onion and set aside
• Mix the lime juice, fish sauce, galangal powder, sugar and Thai chili pepper together in a bowl and set aside
• Brown the meat in a skillet at medium heat until 'almost' cooked through
• Dump the grease out and put the meat back on medium heat
• Add the shallots, garlic, green onion and liquid mix
• Once the meat is done remove from the skillet and add ground rice, torn cilantro leaves and mint leaves
• Mix it all together so the flavors blend

Tips:

• Adjust the heat with more or less Thai chili powder or peppers
• Thais usually serve this chilled or room temperature over some cooked warm sticky rice and garnished with string beans, tomato wedges, sliced cabbage or spinach and basil leaves
• If you like more liquid (it soaks into the rice and tastes great) then you may need to make a little more sauce than this recipe calls for
• Feel free to eat this without rice to keep starches low
• I use about a 1/2 tablespoon less fish sauce than most recipes call for and like to use more lime juice and cilantro than most. Adjust for your tastes.

Eating healthy doesn't have to mean no flavor!

5. Denver Metro Area:
"Kettlebell Classes in Aurora"

Yep it's that time again. New Year's Resolution Time!

And what better way to kick off the new year right than with fun and butt kicking kettlebell classes taught by yours truly.

If you are new to kettlebells, I promise not to kill you... the first session ;-)

If you have been away for a while, time to come back and jump on the success train; have you seen the Hall of Achievements section?!



Classes are $19 per session for drop-in rates

Unlimited Month of Classes Discounts are available

Military, Police, EMT, Firefighter discount available (inquire please)

Classes are kept fairly small and have good fun people in them who all encourage each other to do their best!

You will get lots of personalized attention, improved kettlebell technique, general fitness and nutrition tips and the best body of your life!

What in the world are you waiting for?!

Email me today for more info brian@bccorefitness.com

 

6. HardStyle Magazine:
"Download the Latest Issue for Free!"

What you’ll get in this issue:

#1 HardStyle goes Hollywood—-Enter the Dragon’s John Saxon at 71 years old presses the 70lb KB overhead! and finds a new vitality with Pavel’s Russian Kettlebell training
Interview with Dr. Mark Cheng, RKC Team Leader

#2 The Hungarian kettlebell revolution—-how a Krav-Maga instructor has inspired his fellow-countrymen to crush with kettlebells!
By Peter Lakatos, RKC

#3 Killer deadlift variations for foolproof strength gains—-an excerpt from Power to the People! Monthly
By Pavel

#4 How to Prepare for—-and PASS—-the RKC Instructor Certification Workshop
By Brett Jones, Master RKC Instructor

#5 Hurting?—-Find the REAL Problem Behind the Obvious Complaint
By Brett Jones, Master RKC Instructor and Gray Cook, PT, RKC

#6 “It’s not a matter of IF kettlebells will work for you; it’s a matter of HOW to work with them to fit your needs.”
By Andrea Du Cane, Master RKC Instructor

#7 Real World Power—-the Cardio Connection
By Kenneth Jay, MSc., Senior RKC

#8 How to assess and fix length tension relationships—-to eliminate pain, reduce the chance of injury and enhance your athletic performance
By Mark Reifkind, Senior RKC

#9 Superman—-the reinvention and rise of Mark Reifkind in the hardcore world of competitive weightlifting and strength training
Interview with Dr. Mark Cheng, RKC Team Leader



This is a great quarterly magazine that I read religiously, heck I've even appeared in it a few times.

Download it for free by clicking on the picture.

 

7. Hall of Achievements:

Our newest updates:..

• Kevin Zybach (US ARMY in Iraq) - 100 reps w/ 53 lb KB in the 5-minute Tactical Strength Challenge Snatch Test, that is 20 per minute!s
• s
• Denise Scofield (a grandmother) - 1 Arm Row 62 lb KB for 6 reps per arm
• s
• Shari Wagner - Deadlift 158 lbs
• s
• Jenny Hamilton - Deadlift 140 lbs
• ss
• Denise Scofield (a grandmother) - Deadlift 194 lbs
• s
• Shari Wagner - Military Press 35 lb KB each arm

See all achievements on the "Achievements" link at the left navigation bar at the top of the page or click here

 

8. Personalized Program Design: "Tired of Not Reaching Your Goals?"

One of my recent female clients went down 2 belt sizes in a month! She did it in just 15 minutes 3 - 5 nights per week and from the privacy of her own home using just her own bodyweight!

What are you waiting for?

Let's face it, we are our own worst trainers! We are great at telling other people what to do with their exercise programs but we can't seem to figure our's out to meet our goals.

Whether you are an athlete who needs to perform better at their sport, a guy or gal who wants to look better at the beach, maybe you just want a healthy heart and joints or you want a combination of all three; I can help you get there.

What is Personalized Program Design?

A custom "personalized" training program for created just for you. I take into consideration your goals, time, lifestyle, equipment you have access to, etc. You follow this on your own at home, the gym or where ever. Have kettlebells? Barbells? Dumbbells? Just your bodyweight? No problem!

Who needs Personalized Program Design?

• New to Exercise:
  • You know you want to get 'in-shape' but you have no idea of how to do it. Let me show you exactly what to do and how to progress.
• Wants to Work Out at Home:
  • Custom made training program based on your lifestyle, time, equipment or lack there of.
• Hates Gyms:
  • Join the club, or rather don't, I can't stand them either. Train at home with whatever equipment you have access to. You would be amazed what you can do with just your body weight if that's all you have.
• Short on Time:
• You CAN exercise for 15-20 minutes per day 3-6 days per week easy! If not you are making excuses. I'll show you how, and yes this is effective. But don't kid yourself, you will be working your butt off!
• Been Training for Years But Haven't Reached YOUR Goals:
  • You need a fresh outside perspective on your training. You also need an experienced professional coach to show you the way. I am both of those. All you need to provide is the elbow grease and sweat!

Quit making excuses and treat yourself, you deserve it!

Learn more about my Personalized Program Design here

 

9. Charity in Focus: "Precious Ones Outreach International"

My friend Janet "Ama" Annan has a special place in her heart for orphaned and abused children all over the world. She is the founder of Precious Ones of God Outreach International a non-profit organization that takes in orphaned and neglected children and gives them clothes, housing, food and schooling. I have volunteered my time and talents with this organization and can tell you that they are legitimate and make a real difference in the lives of hurting children. In fact, Janet and her husband both work full-time jobs just so they can provide more money to help the children. She can use all of the support she can get. No guilt trip but if you are moved in your heart then please visit her at her website here.

Until next time, train and eat like ATHLETES not hamsters and reap the rewards of a healthy, lean, sexy/studly body!

Brian Copeland, RKC

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