Kendall Giles

So, I had a plan for the last free month of the summer before school starts: exercise four hours per week for four straight weeks. I accomplished this, but along the way I found that I didn't know how to run.

Especially in light of the Olympics, four hours of exercise per week is nothing compared to what real athletes do. For me, however, with my middle-age lifestyle and Type A work and travel schedule, getting four hours of exercise time per week, for four straight weeks, was a bit of a challenge. I finally accomplished this goal (one on my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project) this week.

I've been trying to do more functional strength training and cross-training---lifting weights, working the heavy bag, and jogging, and had been using an old, typical pair of running shoes to do all these different activities.

The first thing I learned is that typical running shoes are horrible for any type of non-running activity. And when I say "running shoe", I mean the ugly, moon-boot shoes that the salesman will try to sell you in a mall athletic store. You know, the shoes with lots of gaudy colors, often including the word "gel" somewhere in the name or sole, with squishy heals at least an inch thick, and often costing over $100. The walls of your typical sports store are covered with them and the salesman, paid on commission, will swear that these are the best shoes to exercise in.

Basically, for a cross-training shoe, these moon-boot running shoes are not good to use---in fact, they can be quite dangerous. The reason is that when lifting weights, the nice squishy soles on typical running shoes give you an unstable lifting platform, which can cause injuries like toppling over when doing squats, for example, and reduce the lifting effectiveness of your muscles, since your muscle force gets absorbed by the squishy sole rather than being used to actually lift the weight.

So I tossed my running shoes until I could find a replacement. And when I began to exercise in my bare feet, I learned I didn't know how to run! More importantly, I learned that typical "running" shoes are not only not good for cross-training purposes, but they actually are not good for running!

As expected, my lifts became much more stable after giving up my old running shoes, but running in bare feet was a bit of an eye opener. You see, most people who wear those "running" shoes run heel-to-toe. This means that the heel is the first part of your foot that strikes the ground, and then you roll to your forefoot as your step progresses. But if you try to run this way in just your bare feet (try this outside on a sidewalk, for example), you will soon realize that your foot is not engineered to strike heel first! Your foot was engineered to strike with the forefoot first, letting the pad of your foot, arch, and other foot muscles absorb the impact of the step---the heel contact with the ground comes after the foot has settled, if at all.

This site shows an animation highlighting the differences between the forefoot and heel-to-toe running techniques.

So, those squishy running shoes promote running with bad form, with the heel jarring against the ground and sending much of the impact force to the knee. No wonder so many people give up running due to shin splints, sore knees, heel spurs, etc.

When I re-engineered my running form to a more forefoot-first step, I noticed less knee soreness and greatly increased muscle development in the calf and foot muscles. Based on this insight, I chose a shoe with minimal heel, allowing for lifting stability as well as promoting proper running form. Some shoes I've seen recommended as being more suitable for cross-training include the Nike Free, Puma H-Street, Asics Tai-Chi, Asics Bukokan, Vibram Five Fingers, and Addidas Samba, if you insist on wearing shoes at all.

In case you are interested, there are a lot of resources online about this sort of running technique, such as information on the POSE method, Vibram Five Fingers running shoes, and just plain old running barefoot.

But if you've given up running or even walking due to certain injuries, such as those caused by a heel-to-toe step, then you might consider how your foot was engineered and adjust your form according to your fitness needs, while possibly ditching the squishy running shoe.

HOWEVER, note that what works for me might not work for you. In fact, I recently heard from a friend who suffered from plantar fasciitis when running on the balls of his feet, but was fine when running heel-to-toe. So, for a bit of a running/health pun: your mileage may vary.

Time has a way of warping when you are not looking. Blink, and you'll soon realize that years have gone by, as you struggle with work, paying bills, and just making ends meet. But as you get older, you need to be more careful about these large lapses in time. And without proper care, the body will quickly degrade if not kept in shape, as can be seen by America's expanding waistline and the fact that the U.S. Obesity Epidemic Continues to Grow.

We'll see if I caught mine in time, but for now at least I can begin the process of getting back in shape. Towards that goal, we recently completed setting up a home gym.

Why set up your own home gym? Why not just join a local fitness center? Well, for me, my biggest constraint is time, and so having a gym at home really pays for itself when you consider the overhead of travel to and from a fitness center. Also, as I learn more about what is involved in fitness and proper exercises, I have found that most local fitness centers just do not have the right types of equipment there to be worth my time and money. And I really shouldn't have to mention awful music, OPS (Other People's Sweat), and hefty fees commonly found at the local fitness centers.

A good guide on how to set up your own home gym, with pointers to proper equipment and possible vendors, can be found here in the September 1, 2002 issue of the CrossFit Journal. Our current home gym is a first-pass at their prescribed configuration, and includes a multi-station exercise center, plates and dumbbells (and a couple kettlebells), treadmill, striking dummies/bags, pullup station, and some tumbling matts. There are a few pieces of equipment I am lacking, such as a climbing rope, rings, and a rowing machine, but for the most part the current configuration allows for a reasonably effective and useful workout.

Note that the above-linked CrossFit Journal article also contains a list of things you can do to get kicked out of your local gym (I think they were being humorous) - maybe that's a way to get your gym to refund the remaining balance of your gym membership if you want out?

Day 1
Bring your own music - use a boom box - and turn it up to inspiration levels and start working out. ACDC's "Thunderstruck" should do the trick.

As for how to structure your exercise workouts, I can't think of a better program than CrossFit - there you'll find a WoD (workout of the day), videos on how to do each exercise, nutrition information, and lots more. They stress functional fitness, and their workouts will help you get into the best shape of your life.

If you want more of a tactical workout, then you might want to try The Pit Workout and The Pit Workout - CrossPit. I am currently working through The Pit Workout and, well, let me just say it's not yoga down at the Y or tae-bo. Once I get The Pit Workout under my belt, I'll move to CrossPit.

Finally, if you need some motivation to get back in shape, whether you stick with your fitness center or build a home gym, and want examples of how effective the CrossFit program is, you may want to watch this video of one of the CrossFit workouts.

Note that setting up this gym completes one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.

If you've ever wanted to combine staying healthy with literature, then you might want to consider walking, biking, swimming, or rowing to Rivendell.

Here's the idea: Karen Fonstad (sadly, when writing up this post, I saw that Karen died in 2005 due to complications from breast cancer) reverse-engineered the route Frodo and Company took on their way to Rivendell in her book The Atlas of Middle-Earth. For example: leaving Bag End, heading west through the gate into a lane, following the lane for a bit, then following the hedgerows south is about a 3 mile trip.

In her Rivendell mileage chart, Karen notes the cumulative miles, miles between each milepost, and the description of each milepost location. So if you are just starting out and log 3 miles on today's run, then you would make a note in your notebook your mileage run for the day and the cumulative miles you have run. That way you can compare your progress against the progress of the Company as they (and you) head to Rivendell.

All this may sound a bit geeky, but it does work---I have started the journey, though extensive, non-fitness travel has kept me away from too much "Hobbit-walking", as my wife calls it. Nevertheless, yesterday I jogged 2.25 miles, which brings my cumulative total to 36.84 miles. On the Rivendell journey, this puts me just beyond that incident with the Black Rider, but before they meet up with the Elves on the Road.

As a final note: in case you are not familiar with Rivendell, Hobbits, or J.R.R. Tolkien, get thee to Amazon and buy the books, or at least the movies. Getting back into shape can wait until you finish - one has to have priorities.

For some time now I have been on frequent travel. You know what this means - quick meals from the drive-through window, not enough "good for you" foods and drinks, exposure to lots of other people on the run and sometimes sick with a cold or flu, lack of a good night's sleep, and a difficulty in getting enough exercise. While pushups are great, and can be done anywhere, I also wanted a little something more than a pushup or situp.

I thought about bringing around some kettlebells, but those aren't very portable, and I didn't want them flying around the car in case there was an accident. But after looking around for a bit, I took a chance on an inexpensive and portable chin-up / pull-up bar, called the Creative Fitness Door Gym.

After a quick assembly, I was actually quite impressed. It rests on the frame of a door - no nails or screws or glue needed - it takes about one second to remove it from the door, leaving no marks. Yet it is very sturdy and allows for as many chin-ups as you could ever possibly want to do. With it you can do pull-ups using multiple grips - with your palms facing away from you, palms facing towards you, and palms facing each other. Moreover, the bar also can be placed on the floor, allowing you to do deep pushups. When I am done and have to hit the road, I throw it in the back of the car.

Note that the image on Amazon does not do the product justice - here it is on a door frame:

Technorati Tags: fitness, review

Richmond regularly tops lists of high-crime cities, and just a few weeks into my new job there, I was "reacquainted" with this unfortunate aspect.

While walking to my car late one night from the office on campus, sick with the flu and carrying a couple bags of books, it seems that I was selected as the target of a gang initiation, whereby the candidate inductee must start a fight with the victim. Luckily I kept my cool during the incident and all ended OK, but it was not a pleasant experience, and it was a good reminder that, when in the real world, all is not milk and honey.

Thinking now of practical self-defense options, here is a movie made in about 2002 by a Western martial arts group who got together at Frogmore Grange, Coventry, England. Participants enjoyed tea and crumpets before the days' activities of walking stick fighting, pugilism, and jiujitsu, followed by a three-course meal in a Victorian dining room:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGiTAtJI_uU

Self-defense laws being what they are, especially on university campuses, certain self-defense options are precluded from consideration. However, the cane or walking stick certainly seems viable. Here is a transcription of a self-defence article from 1901:

"Self-defence with a Walking-stick: The Different Methods of Defending Oneself with a Walking-Stick or Umbrella when Attacked under Unequal Conditions"

Self-defense with a cane is a component of Bartitsu, the martial art made popular in the Sherlock Holmes stories. Other resources for this line of self-defense and training include:

• The Bartitsu Society
• canes at woodenswords
• Defense Dans La Rue
• Bartitsu Wikipedia entry

Be safe, and be prepared!

Technorati Tags: culture, defense, fitness, martial arts, security, virginia

Just look at the labels or the bottled water ads: deep, pristine pools of spring water; majestic alpine peaks; healthy, active people gulping down icy bottled water between biking in the park and a trip to the yoga studio.

While the shiny labels on bottled water make us think we are doing the right thing by buying and drinking it, this story lists 5 reasons not to drink bottled water:

• Bottled water costs more than gasoline
• Is regulated by the FDA less than tap water
• The containers are plastic: 80% are thrown away each year, entering oceans and filling garbage dumps
• More bottled water means less improvement to the public water supply
• Fosters the corporatization of the water supply

Also, many investigations have shown that expensive bottled water is often little more than regular tap water with a fancy label.

While it is unfortunate that probably most people think bottled water is somehow better for them than plain tap water, as a valid reason for drinking bottled water I can see that bottled water might be useful when traveling to different towns, since you would not be accustomed to the bacteria strains present in the local tap water systems. Some also like bottled water when exercising.

As a resolution to the dilemma, I have found that buying a reusable bottle, such as the Colored Lexan Wide Mouth Bottle (32 oz.) - Nalgene Water Bottle, and re-filling it with filtered water or tap water, seems to be a reasonable compromise between not being wasteful with all the plastic throw-away yet having water convenient when exercising or traveling.

The bottles pictured above have a wide-mouth, making it easy to add sports-powders or ice cubes to the bottle, and the lexan material means that the bottle will last for many years of rugged use. Note that the bottles comes in a variety of colors, and there are also narrow-mouth versions.

Technorati Tags: living, science, technology, travel

A Pell is essentially a striking dummy that is used for weapons training. Pells have been used for hundreds of years both in Western Arts as well as Eastern Arts. They can be used indoors or outdoors, can be mounted or left free-swinging, and used with a variety of weapons. The purpose is not to swing as hard as you can, but to refine your technique and control - developing a solid foundation of basics is very important if you want to progress in your abilities.

I'll certainly let you know when I get there.

In the meantime, here is a picture of a pell I made:

It is a modification of the Tire Man #1 found in the Pell FAQ. My design is free-swinging, allowing for dynamic training interaction. A variety of weapons can be used by the little guy - he is wielding a basic bamboo shinai in the picture. Also, he has two arms, so he can wield single or double-handed weapons. And, he has two legs, for leg strikes.

For the head, I have used an American football helmet. If you will be doing light strikes with shinai, as with kendo, then you can substitute a kendo men helmet or even a baseball helmet. But if you are practicing other sword/weapon arts and use strikes with more intent, then you may find the football helmet more durable. Of course, feel free to substitute a knight's helm if you have some spares around...(-:

A variety of weapons can be used against him - shinai, fukoro shinai, bokken, waster, steel sword blunt, dagger, bo, quarterstaff, spear, etc. The only caution would be the fact that the rubber in the tire may mark your wooden/bamboo weapons, so take note. You can strike him while he is still or you can swing him for a more dynamic effect.

In the picture he is outside, but he can be moved indoors and mounted on a heavy punching bag stand or mounted on a more static base (and not left swinging). You may also want to add another rope to your swinging pell because sometimes he can turn in circles, making it hard to interface with.

Finally, here are some pell links that may be of interest:

• Big Blue
  
• Bob
  
• Pell FAQ
  
• The Ubiquitous Pell
  
• Hanging Cross Pell E.g.
  
• Bayonet Pell E.g.
  

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Technorati Tags: defense, fitness, martial arts

The Secret History of the Sword: Adventures in Ancient Martial Arts, by J. Christopher Amberger

An amazing treasure-house of anecdotes, accountings, and historical musings on sword play across the generations and cultures. Its loose presentation style lends it to reading in frenetic bursts. I really enjoyed his commentary and analysis of fencing training and combat arts. One criticism is that he's not very strong on pre-Renaissance swordsmanship or history. But his pre-Renaissance discussion is just at the beginning of the book and that can be quickly skimmed -- the rest of the book is great.

Technorati Tags: book, culture, fitness, martial arts, review

I took my first real ride on my Downtube Mini folding bike over the weekend. I mentioned earlier that I had brought the folding bike with me to Los Angeles, since I wouldn't have a car while I was here.

Someone at work had mentioned that San Vincente Boulevard was a nice road to take to the beach, so I thought that would be a nice way to test out the new bike and to see some of the sights. The route I ended up taking is highlighted in purple (UCLA is in the upper right corner; Santa Monica pier is in the lower left corner).

The first task was to find San Vincente Boulevard. So I started at UCLA, headed South on Westwood Boulevard, and followed the Bike Path signs west on Wilshire Boulevard. The first ten minutes of my trip went fine.

However, my first mistake was to ride in traffic along Wilshire Boulevard. I am not a bike rider, but I knew that it is best to ride in the right-most lane. And after all, I was following the Bike Route signs. So all was fine, until I discovered suddenly that my lane, and the one to my left, turn into feeder lanes for the 405 San Diego Freeway.

Luckily, the Downtube Mini has a sharp turning radius, and after a bit of dodge and weave, I managed to get out of that situation.

Once I got west of the 405, I turned right onto San Vincente Boulevard. This was a much nicer road -- with a real bike lane, lots of nice houses, and being generally a pleasant place to ride a bike, as the following pictures show.

My second mistake was to not apply sunscreen. There is quite a bit of sun in L.A., especially at the beach. So about six miles into the trip, which put me near where San Vincente hits Ocean Avenue, I was starting to feel the heat. However, all discomfort was forgotten once I saw the view:

Note that in the second beach picture, the pier in the distance is Santa Monica Pier.

Also note that these pictures were taken from Ocean Avenue, which is on top of a small cliff, above the Pacific Coast Highway and above the beach.

However, when you have a folding bike (which weighs 24.5 pounds), cliffs are not a problem. No, I did not fall off the cliff, for once, but I did find some stairs going down the cliff. This picture is looking back after I carried my bike down the stairs and crossed the bridge over the Pacific Coast Highway:

However, by this time I realized my third mistake. On my next trip I will leave my backpack containing my laptop computer and some textbooks in my room. Evidently these sorts of things aren't really needed at the beach.

The fourth mistake dawned soon after -- riding a bike a long distance in the sun makes one thirsty and hungry.

Nevertheless, I rode my bike along the beach until I got to the Santa Monica Pier. There were the usual things one finds on a pier -- people fishing, people walking, people selling trinkets, people playing musical instruments -- though this was the first time I have seen a 9-story ferris wheel on a pier before:

My return trip was similar to my outbound trip, except that I rode back to San Vincente along Ocean Avenue instead of along the beach, so that I would not have to carry my bike, backpack, laptop, and books back up those stairs.

The round-trip was about 15 miles.

Technorati Tags: bike, culture, fitness, living, travel

Well, at least using my experience with one trip, it works.

In my previous post, "In theory: how to survive when on travel without a car - the folding bike", I discussed this idea for staying in a city without a car. I showed a picture of the bike and a picture of the bike folded in a suitcase.

Here is a photo of the bike, unpacked from the suitcase, after a trip of 2,329 miles via airplane:

Technorati Tags: culture, living, travel

This is a tanjo.

Technorati Tags: culture, defense, martial arts

There are not a lot of options for classical fencing in Virginia. However, I am just finishing up a beginner's class at Salle Green, in Richmond, and it has been a good class. While I would prefer longer sessions, the one-hour class, once a week, for eight weeks in the beginner's course is probably just right for those new to fencing and martial arts.

If you are at all interested in fencing (classical or sport), or western martial arts, or just want something to do that is a little more sophisticated than basketball or listening to your iPod, then you should come out to Salle Green.

Technorati Tags: fitness, martial arts, virginia

Today was a perfect day for the 93rd annual National Cherry Blossom Festival in our nation's Capital. Our group, the Capital Area Budokai, put on a martial arts demonstration in downtown Washington D.C. for the festival. The skies were blue, the blossoms were at their peak, our stage had a great view of the Capitol, and lots of people came out to see us.

Here are a few photos from the demo. Note that though my wife took lots of great pictures, by the time we went on, the sun had moved us into shadows. Thus, I had to wrangle with the brightness and contrast in the pictures to make them even partially visible.

The intro however was in bright sunlight. Here you can get a feel for the crowds, the stage, and the stage floor - it was a squishy gym mat that soaked up the sun's rays. Also, note that this image shows things as they should be: the jo player standing over the defeated swordsman:

For the tanjo set, here I am doing Kote Migi:

followed by Sutemi. Note that I got a good strong block on my opponent's strike, though I really should have caught both elbows:

For the jo set, here is the group at the beginning of Tachi Otoshi. Note how small the stage is: I had to pull a lot of my suigetsu strikes to prevent my opponent from sailing off the stage:

In the first part of Tachi Otoshi, I strike at my opponent's head: luckily (for him) he was able to block my strike:

He tried to counter by striking my neck, but the photo shows me just before my kuritsuke catches his tsuka for a block:

All in all it was a fun demonstration and a lot of people got to see some traditional Japanese martial arts. Maybe next year, if the stage is a little higher (so more people can see) and a little larger (so we can move around without worrying about falling off), it will be even better.

Technorati Tags: culture, fitness, martial arts, virginia

Recently on the popular blog BoingBoing, there were several entries making reference to two articles posted on EJMAS about a series of self-defence techniques with a walking stick originally printed in Pearson's Magazine in 1901.

While I suppose any relatively positive appearance in popular media about (Western) martial arts is a good thing, I still couldn't help but cringe when Cory Doctorow mentioned that these techniques allowed you to "kick someone's ass" with an umbrella.

Although, when they start teaching samurai-aerobics (e.g. in New York you can take "FORZA!", which is described in their literature as: "Italian for 'strength and power.' Also known as Samurai sword training, the one-hour class is a super-charged workout that blends elements of two Japanese Sword Fighting techniques--Kendo and Aikijujitsu. Intermediate-advanced levels.") fashioned after The Last Samurai and Kill Bill, I suppose arming yourself with an umbrella is at least a credible option.

Technorati Tags: fitness, martial arts

Lately, with work, school, research, travel, and family obligations, I have not had as much time as I would like for MA training. However, I did jump through quite a few hoops in order to be able to attend a two-day seminar on Italian Dueling Sabre this past weekend in Annapolis, MD. The seminar was taught by Maestro Sean Hayes, master of arms at the Northwest Academy of Arms, and was sponsored by MASHS

Dueling sabre was from a time where swordsmen developed exquisite technique as well as the highest levels of health and conditioning in order to not only excel at their sword art, but also to survive its direct application in the form of duels.

The seminar was excellent and Maestro Hayes is a superb instructor. He took a well-attended but diverse audience, all new to the dueling aspects of sabre, from initial positions to the Countertime Theory, a great example of time and action in the later 19th century Italian schools.

Dueling sabre, as taught by Maestro Hayes is a living tradition of a historical martial art, and I look forward to exploring its subtleties and power in the future.

Technorati Tags: defense, fitness, martial arts

I have bad form, but here I am doing the Muso Shinden Ryu jodo kata Tachi Otoshi; Steve is doing sword.

If your browser doesn't have the right plugin, you can download the movie.

Technorati Tags: fitness, martial arts