Chaos

The upcoming week will surely bring it's share of mayhem. The appropriately named "Uproar on the Lakeshore" will ensure this. Most of you are derby girls though. Chaos is where you thrive, often creating more as you go. So here is the way I see it. This is the finest teams in the land meeting in one of the nations largest cities( one of my personal favorites) to let the world know that a lot of strong women came to play and they do not aim to disappoint! This is another step toward the stage that derby deserves and I can't wait to see the results. Let's get this started with one last semi-difficult workout !

5 min. warm up
Stretch
3x 10 squat thrusts (burpees)
3x 30 sec. mountain climbers
3x 10 pushups
3x 10 inverted rows
3x 10 overhead press
3x 10 tricep dips
50 meters of lunges
4 planks to failure
2x 10 3sec. abdominal presses
5 min. cooldown
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

Solitude

Preparation for any moment in life may be the truest key to being able to determine an outcome. It is the one variable to success or failure that we can have complete control of. Keep in mind as we go forward that even with the best preparation there will still be things outside of our control. The factors are mainly what accounts for the outliers that can be found where the unprepared find victory. Getting back to the task at hand though, it is time to start thinking through the mental aspects of the game with the pending national tournament. A few thing that I recommend going over in order to feel your best going into such a big weekend are the hours of work that have already been done. Think about the previous ten months worth of hours on wheels, hits that have been dealt and absorbed, laughter and camaraderie shared between teammates, and the dreams that you as women have built and are getting ready to have come true. The physical work is all but finished as far as preparation is concerned. Now it is about the mentality of executing that for which you have been working so hard at. Most athletes in this type of situation try to find some time to break it all down without a lot of chaos surrounding them. Collegiate and professional teams alike try and stay out of the spotlight as much as possible before big games as not to psych themselves out or get too excited and gas before the appropriate time. If I were in this position I would recommend carrying the mp3 player everywhere I could and shutting the world out as much as is possible. Life is chaotic for most of us but these are not stresses that you need to worry about in the final steps of mental preparation for big moments in your life where you are expected to be at peak performance. Try to find some quiet in your mind and be ready for the ensuing madness that you will unleash!

Stretch
45-60min. constant paced cardio
4-6 25 meter sprints
5 min cooldown
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

A Bit Dodgy

We are going to cut to the chase today and just jump straight in for the workout. Some good things are to come including nationals so plenty to look forward to. Have a Great Day!

5 min. warm up
Stretch
3x 20 Sumo squats
3x 20 fire hydrants (each side)
3x 20 leg extensions (each side)
50 meters of lunges
3x 10 push ups
3x 20 tricep dips
3x 10 inverted rows
3x 10 front raises
3x 10 superman
3x 20 scissor kicks
ABC leg lifts (draw the alphabet with your feet, I prefer lower case cursive)
2x 50 regular crunches (small movements, really fast)
2x 25 bicycle crunches
5 min. cool down
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

Theres No Higher Ground To Stand Than The Bottom Of The Pile

This is a nasty time in general with an upcoming election. For the record, I will not be discussing politics today or more than likely ever here. Standing in the gym that I train out of it has become hard to miss the backbiting jabs that are broadcast by candidates against there opponents. The sad part is that often they don't even accept responsibility for running the ad speaking poorly against their foe. It is times like this that I am reminded of why the derby community has both fascinated and confused me for so long. There is no doubt in my mind that in every bout I have seen both teams were in it to win it. I am sure that if you look hard enough you can find an ugly side to each competition but thus far I have not seen this nearly to the extent that I expected. After having been an athlete I am all too aware of the horrible things that can sometimes come from to individuals competing for a single position or victory. There were situations where I have seen intentional maiming of fellow teammates for a starting position. Then I began spending time around the roller girls. It was much to my surprise to find members of opposing teams, even opposing leagues, sharing meals, homes, and trade secrets. This still blows my mind. It has been my experience that most leagues are very open to allowing skaters from across the country to join them if they happen to be in town. My point is that in a world that shows evidence of no decency or honor left in competition I am elated to have discovered the island of refuge that derby has become for so many. Are you perfect? No. You do a really good job of accepting that and moving on though not to mention the respect that you generally show everyone else. Keep up the great work!!!

5 min warm up
Stretch
3x 10 straight arm twists (each side)
3x 10 wood chops
3x 10 floor bridge
3x 10 quadruped
3x 10 V sit twist
3x 10 jackknife crunch
4x 30 sec. plank
5 min cool down
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

Tighten It Up

Enough with the diatribes on life. This is a workout blog and it is time to get back to the real issues at hand. Today's issue, the laziness of your core. I am aware that it is not p.c. to call someone lazy and that core day is tomorrow but there is none here to fire me. So lazy core it is. Here is the deal! the lives that we live currently allow our core muscles to relax and cause tons of problems by not doing there job. One of the biggest problems that a weak core contributes to is a lack of good respiration. Because our abdominal wall is allowed to relax as we slouch at computer screens or wait tables wit no regard to posture, the diaphragm cannot properly contract or relax and we are not able to maximize the capability of our lungs. Anyone who has had some experience with singing can appreciate the difference between abdominal and diaphragm breathing. The best way to remedy this malaise is to consciously squeeze your abs and constantly hold good posture. This alone will help improve both your game and your life immeasurably. That is the focus for today now lets go to work!

5 min. warm up
Stretch
20 min moderate cardio
4x 50 meter sprints
4x 100 meter sprints
4x 200 meter sprints
2x 25 meter hill sprints
5 min cool down
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

Fight!

Every so often our worlds are reduced to only the most basic of necessity. Personally I have always been a bit of a minimalist. You can see evidence of this in a lot of my approach to fitness specifically in that I see no need for everyone to have a gym membership in order to be entitled to being in good shape. All of that aside though, the real question here is what do you do when life is kicking your ass? I'm not suggesting that we should take much time to complain about this or stay mad at our dads or anything of the sort. It is simply the truth that sometimes you just take a few tough shots and are slower getting up than normal. Derby girls know this better than most! I don't want to get too philosophical here or anything but let me share this. Recently I have run through some interesting situations. I am thankful for great friends and family but sometimes they just can't help. They can certainly offer tons of cliches that mean very little in practical application such as "You win some, you lose some" and "You'll have good days and bad days" and my personal favorite "Let go and let God". While there may be some wisdom in these statements and I am sure they come from caring, well intentioned people, for the most part they leave something to be desired. My new found realization is this: Good times and bad times seldom care enough for each other or for those they are affecting to wait in line. Most of our days will be a mixture of both great highs and devastating lows. That said, what are we to do with this theory? I suggest you fight and fight well. This is not a call to the militant or an uprising against peace. It is rather a call to fight to gain ground in the best of situations and to fight to hold fast in the worst. Take the time to fight your way through your day and make sure your fight is just. The only other thing I can offer is that when looking at a fight like the ones I am discussing, it is seldom worthwhile to fight a particular individual. More often you will find your battle is with yourself and if you beat yourself to badly than you have lost anyway. I know this because I am Irish and fighting is in my blood. The Irish have fought for years against everyone and mostly just beaten themselves. This week let's fight for more good in our days and a better shot at showing the rest of the world why derby girls are a force to be reckoned with! Now let's go to work!

5 min. warm up
Stretch
3x 25 meters lunges
3x 10push ups
3x 10 overhead presses
3x 10 speed skater jumps
50 meters karaoke(grapevine)
4x 30 sec. planks
2x 10 hip ups
25 bicycle crunches(each side)
2x 10 side crunches (each side)
5 min. cooldown
Stretch

Enjoy!

J

P.S. By the way, If you are just starting out most of the workouts will be completable for any fitness level. If there are any questions feel free to ask and I will try to stay on top of answering them! Thanks !

Whoa

I've lost track of whether it is early or late and for that matter what day it is. Unfortunately I'm not functioning well enough to come up with anything earth shattering or life changing this morning so I will leave it in your hands. The name of the game today is active rest. Take the day and enjoy it however you please but try to keep up and moving as much as possible. We will be back at it hard tomorrow so have a good break!

J