Plyometrics

I recently told my father I would email him some of my workout routines that Marcus and I have put together. Marcus puts them together for his martial arts class or to help make my workouts more intense; I’ve put them together because I like variety, and because sometimes I obsess and search workouts on the internet.

So, instead of just emailing him, or rather, emailing my Mother so she can print for him (see the blog Hello? The power of CONNECTING and how technology has changed things for reference on my Father’s computer skills), I decided to write a blog about it...for my Mother to print for him.

This is almost ironic because my early education in fitness was primarily from my Father. He taught me how to ride a bike and lift weights properly. One of his oldest friends had me leading aerobics in gym class at age 12. I swear my Father knew all of the phy-ed (physical education) teachers in the whole city where I grew up. My father’s influence was omnipresent, at least in my formative years around workouts and fitness.

So it’s an interesting flip of roles that I’m now checking in with him on his workouts. That I’m now talking to him about his diet, workout routine and overall health. And of course, it’s no coincidence that the man I’ll likely marry (Marcus) is a serious fitness junkie - though he’s mellowed on his own workout routine in the last few years because his kidneys are napping. In the past, Marcus would train in Jeet Kune Do 2-4 hours a day after an 80-mile bike ride. On the days he didn’t bike, he’d cross train by doing what he called The Bruce Lee workout, which consisted of thousands of kicks, punches, or slips. According to Marcus, Bruce Lee’s notes illustrated Bruce taking a move, like a round-kick for example, and repeating the movement 5000 times. Marcus was a little less ambitious – he only repeated the kicks 1000 times. It’s probably good that Marcus has mellowed.

The truth is, it’s not that my Father doesn’t know what to do, it’s just that...well maybe he doesn’t know what to do about his eating, because since retirement he’s slowly gained weight. But I think he had a routine while teaching, and since he was a fitness teacher (high school, mostly), he was working out throughout the day. As a retiree, his routine is a little more sedentary, to make a gross understatement. He’s still strong as an ox, in fact he lifted 250 lbs on his 70^th birthday, but he carries extra weight, and his blood sugar, as well as his pant-waist size, reflects his more retired lifestyle.

So...I told him he should be getting more out of his workouts and that it’s probable he’s become a bit complacent in his workouts. He replied, true to form and sarcastic, “a little?” Yes, Dad, a little is your influence creeping into my language. (My Father has always had a great sense of humor, annoyingly great at times when he was pointing out his children’s idiosyncrasies.)

So after all of that, here’s a few exercise routines for my Dad or anyone else out there.

Very important FORM note for all exercises:

Feet should be pointed STRAIGHT, stance should be between hip and shoulder WIDTH. We’ll call this balanced stance. (The exception on this is The Crab.) Patella (point just below knee cap), must be over 2^nd toe. KNEES should not pass beyond your TOES. (Your butt has to move backward & torso down to thighs to maintain this proper form. Use a mirror to ensure your knees don’t wobble as you go down. If they do, SLOW DOWN and correct your form. Go SLOW DOWN, and quick UP, if you can. If this still creates a wobble, go SLOW the whole time until you build up strength. This will strengthen your knees & help prevent knee injury. Also, get barefoot-style shoes for your workouts. (I like vibram fivefingers.) This will strengthen your feet, legs and all the very important stabilizer muscles. For squats, imagine a ski jumper or as Marcus likes to say, “knees to boobs.”

For this blog, I’ll share the plyometrics Marcus does before class and recommends for clients. (I do these 3-4 times per week.) For tomorrow’s workout blog, I’ll share my variation on the 300 workout. (The movie 300.)

Sifu’s Plyometrics:

Do each exercise for 30 seconds, then rest for 30 seconds. Marcus calls it 30-30s. Repeat the whole set 2-4 times per workout. You may get sore so the first time you may want to only do 2 sets.

Kick & Twist

Kick with right leg, twist torso toward right leg with left arm swinging forward.

30 seconds for each leg.

Dynamic Lunges

Stand hip-width apart. Step forward into a lunge, be sure your knees bend to 90° angles and not beyond. After lunge push yourself up back to starting position. Switch right and left every other lunge forward.

Switch-step Jump Squat

Start in balanced stance. Step forward 1-foot with the right leg, step backward 1-foot with the left leg, squat down. Jump up, switch your foot position, repeat.

The Heisman

Looks very similar to The Heisman trophy. Side-step dynamically, lifting inside knee to elbow. Keep pelvis tucked and back straight.

The Superman

Start in balanced stance. Squat down, jump up with arms extended toward the sky. Pretend you’re trying to take off like Superman.

The Crab

Wide stance, feet/knees turned out, thighs parallel to the ground. Shuffle to the right starting the shuffle with the left leg, land in the original wide stance. Back straight; hands in prayer pose in front of your chest.

I realize words alone don’t describe this as well as pictures, but we will have pictures, diagrams and video sometime in the near future. Leave a comment if you have questions. These exercises are great because they work on cardiovascular but are also strength-building.

Dad, let me know if you have questions, though I suspect this will be like riding a bike.

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