Squatrx Tribute

I have been a longtime fan of Boris Bachman's blog, and this week in particular, it has spoken to me in several ways. The first post I found interesting was a special "birthday" post in which Boris documented 40 "pearls" that he has learned over the course of his 40 years. They are all health/fitness related and the vast majority are spot on. However, the pearl that spoke the most to me was #37:

37) Stress will ruin your posture, your breathing, and your mobility. We stress over this and that, and we stress about stress. We lose sleep because of stress and drink "stress in a can" to get us through more stress. Stress will destroy your mind and body. Stress can kill you. Stress becomes a multi-layered smothering blanket if you can't or won't step away from it.

This pearl really hits the mark. Whether you are aware of it or not, stress is taking its toll on you physically and mentally, especially in our modern, Western society. There are many ways to manage your stress, but the first step is recognizing that it is a problem. Exercise is a critical slayer of stress for me personally. I have recognized this since I was much younger, but as my life has evolved and become more complex, I also began to realize that exercise was no longer enough. Over the past year, I have become a strong believer in the benefit of mindfullness. The cornerstone of which, for me, is daily meditation. Focusing on my breath alone for 15-30 minutes a day has had a profound impact on my daily outlook and my ability to overcome the crush of stress that I encounter on a regular basis. My attitude towards work and my personal life, especially my family, have greatly improved. I am much happier and I believe much more productive. I am living in the moment, I am enjoying the sunset, the beauty of my surroundings, and am able to give my full attention to my children and wife when I am home. I am no longer replaying past events that I no longer have control over or thinking about events in the future that are not worth worrying about....instead, I am enjoying the NOW.

Today, I also decided to give one of Boris's workouts a go. He posted video of this on his most recent blog post. It is a combination routine using an escalating ladder for reps. The routine is composed of cleans, jerks, and overhead squats. The bell is never put to the ground until you are done, however you do switch hands after each rung of the ladder. For example, on the left - 1 clean, 1 jerk, 1 overhead squat, switch to right hand, 1 clean, 1 jerk, 1 overhead squat, switch, etc.....

Warm Up: Pec Stretch, Stick Shrug, Face Pull, Rotational Scap Pullaparts

Work Out: Clean/Jerk/Overhead Squat (24kg)

*Rep ladder from 1 to 10 reps in each exercise with each hand

*23 minutes of nonstop work

*Heartrate at completion - 160

Boris, thanks for the great blog and the great workout......keep it up.