Out of the box thinking

I keep on meaning to take a break from the "sport of fitness" criticism, but they keep pushing out content that makes me wince.

Take this for example. It's a bunch of people doing Crossfit on the roof of a building. Okay, that's fine. I enjoy how they've tried to make Crossfit look interesting with all the rapid cutting, harsh lighting, etc. But, really, I don't have a problem with the production. (They did manage what are perhaps the most boring Gopro shots of all time though...)

My problem is stated in the first line of the video's description: "We want to show people that fitness is something that can be done anywhere, at any time."  Yeah... with the correct permits and a couple thousand dollars worth of Reebok Crossfit gear...

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I don't know about you, but if that's fitness then I can't afford it. If you are really interested in an anywhere, anytime, no excuses approach to HIIT, then check out Ross Training. And/or read Never Gymless. Then get to your favorite home improvement store and stock up. For the cost of one month at an average Crossfit box you can make yourself a formidable array of strength equipment.

Or forego equipment alltogether. Run, jump, and climb. Vault and balance. Dance. Do martial arts. Work on your pistol squats.

If you live near any kind of natural setting, go find some stones or some logs. Deadlift a big rock, set it aside, then spend the next 3 minutes on the ground checking out all the neat bugs that are living under that rock. Then put it back, select another rock, and repeat!

Look, I understand marketing. A key to opening those upper-middle class wallets is conferring a sense of authenticity. I guess I just prefer products/services that are actually authentic vs. relying on stunts and showmanship. Reebok is trying to generate buzz so they can sell stuff. They don't care about your health. They care about next quarter.

This is ultimately why I decided to turn away from standard MBA jobs after I graduated. The conversations with the career services people went something like this: "Oh, you like fitness? Well, you should try for a brand management position at Nike!" Okay, but Nike doesn't give a hoot about your fitness - they care about Nike's stock price.

I prefer to stay small and stay close to real people. It keeps me honest and keeps my incentives lined up. If I do a good job as a coach, people keep coming back. My end-of-year bonus comes from looking around at all the people I helped make better... and from the fact that I get to be outside for large portions of every day.

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At the end of the video, Reebok asks "Where will the sport of fitness arrive next?" Hey Reebok, how about Chapel Hill, NC? I'll save you some helicopter fuel: You don't need to bring any of your fancy stuff. Just meet me in Forest Theater and I'll show you what real "anywhere, any time" fitness is all about.

The smart body games

I first heard the term "smart body" in college when I was reading some article about MMA training. There are other names for this - stuff like "kinesthetic awareness," "well coordinated," or just plain and simple "athletic." But I always liked "smart body" since it sets up a great little comparison. Just like all squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares, a smart body is always strong, but a strong body isn't necessarily smart.

In my opinion, the hallmark of a smart body is well developed and - here's the key - efficient movement skills.

Read that last line again, because there's an interesting implication embedded in it. People with smart bodies are efficient, which means they look for ways to do LESS work to accomplish a task. Our modern fitness industry revolves around ways to get you to do MORE work. If you've been sedentary and are looking to get back into shape, then you absolutely need to do more work. But at a certain point, a paradigm shift needs to happen. You need to stop moving around because you have to burn X number of calories and start moving around because you love it. This means finding an activity you can love (probably not the treadmill) and you want to do for as long as possible. Efficient movement lets you play longer and harder.

So how to build a smarter body? Practice skill-based movements, the more the merrier. The fancy term we sometimes use is "complexity bias." Basically, the more complex the skill-set, the more benefit you get. A sprinter has a smarter body than a jogger, a running back has a smarter body than a sprinter, etc. You don't have to go high-intensity - Tai Chi and dancing will make your body incredibly smart. Just ask Pai Mei:

I saw Sean do this once. No, really.

Something I've noticed is that people with smart bodies are incredibly adaptable - they learn new things quickly. I think this is why most people who excel at Crossfit have had prior training in a skill-heavy discipline and why I always have an easy time of teaching non-parkour skills to traceurs.

"Okay," I hear you say, "I'm sold. Smart bodies FTW... now what?"  I have a few little games you can play in your house that require almost no equipment. Let's call them the Smart Body Games:

1. Stand up and sit down:  From a standing position, sit down on the floor. Then return to standing. Don't use your arms/hands and maintain good posture the whole time. For added challenge, add in rotations as you ascend/descend. Now try to do it with one leg and one arm. Play with different combinations of limbs.

2. "My arms!": Lie down on your back and pretend your arms are paralyzed. Maneuver yourself around the house using only your legs. Go around corners, try to get up onto couches/chairs, you can even try going down stairs (go feet first... trust me) Feel free to roll onto your stomach at any point, just don't use your arms to do so!

3. "My legs!": Same as above, but now your legs are paralyzed.

4. "Never say die!": Same as above, but now you've only got 1 limb. Good luck :)

5. "Do a barrel roll!": Travel only via rolling. This could be a PK style shoulder roll, back roll, baby style roll, anything you want. This one is especially fun to do with spouses/siblings/roommates/etc. Watch your head.

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Sets, reps, etc. aren't important. Remember, you're trying to make this as easy as possible - efficiency is king! I'm sure we all have versions of these types of games and I'd love to hear some of yours - comment away!

Move further

This is not a post about cardio.

...but, actually, while we're on the subject: Cardio is important. You should do it. Especially running. I should probably clarify that by "running" I mean "running more than 3 miles." There are depressingly big camps in the Paleo/Crossfit/Ancestral Health/Whatever-we're-calling-it-these-days movements who vocally declare their hatred and distain for running.  I really believe running is the beginning and the end of all functional movement, especially Parkour. Fancy moves, tricks, etc. are kid's stuff (which I don't mean in a bad way at all - I think they're awesome) but the real deal comes when you try to cover distance in an obstacle rich environment.

Okay, mini-rant over.

Last week I was talking with a guy who asked me, "So what is Fifth Ape training?" I was feeling philosophical so I replied something along the lines of "It's an acknowledgement of the journey."

That guy never signed up for a free trial class. I am suddenly realizing that I am perhaps the world's worst salesman.

Let's see if I can elaborate here. There's a saying that the best fitness program is the one you'll stick to. I 80% agree. But, I think there's more to it. I think what REALLY makes the difference - the thing that ties together fitness and health (not the same thing btw) is a constant need to evolve and grow as a human being. You must cultivate a desire to constantly push beyond your comfort zone. This doesn't mean flitting from one activity to another but it does mean refusing to get stuck and stagnate.

For me, the journey began at age 12 when I decided to combine two interests of mine - martial arts movies and a deep desire to impress girls* - by signing up for martial arts classes. During that time I was also spending an hour after school with this guy:

Batman is my coach...which seared into my impressionable brain that, while brawn and fighting skill is important, the SUPER cool thing to do is outthink and outmaneuver your opponents. And have neat gadgets. Those are some good life lessons.

*For my young male readers, I regret to inform you that martial arts skills do not impress girls. You know what does? Cooking. Learn to cook. Seriously.

When I made it to college, my martial arts practice deepened when I was introduced to grappling and muay thai. I realized I needed supplemental training to improve my MMA game. So I started bodybuilding, which had a very limited positive effect. Through exercise science classes and watching the football team train, I realized that athletes train very differently from "regular" people and was off and running down the path of "functional fitness." This led to Crossfit and George Hebert's Natural Method. This led to watching a video of some crazy Russians doing "Russian climbing" - my first intro to Parkour.

So I became a Crossfit zealot, which pushed me a little further down the path before I ran into its inherent limitations, and backed away. I followed a strict Paleo diet, before I realized I could loosen up a bit and suffer no ill effects. I realized that if I trained a little differently and took things at my own pace, I could not just learn but excel at Parkour, despite my "old age." I learned that pulling back from MMA training and culture gave me the space to become a gentler person without rejecting martial arts all together.

Now, I can't say this with 100% certainty because I'm still very much on my own journey, but I think what I've learned is this: skill, movement, and adventure come first. Training that furthers those goals tends to stick around. Everything else is stripped away. Bruce Lee knew what he was talking about.

I don't want to beat the dead horse any more, but this is why this whole "sport of fitness" thing makes me either 1) double over with laughter or 2) get kinda sad. Lifting weights, swinging kettlebells, and doing box jumps is what you do to get better at the actual fun stuff. It's fine - great actually - if you enjoy all that in and of itself (I do!) But don't stop there! If that's your idea of "play" and "the unknown" then you really do lead a zoo-human life. I'm reminded of one of my favorite Coach Rip stories. A man tells Rip that "Starting Strength" is the most interesting book he's ever read to which Rip replies, "You must have only started reading a couple weeks ago."

Everyone's journey will look different and it absolutely does not have to include Parkour, martial arts, etc. I guess what I'm really asking is for you to take enough interest in your own life to make it as interesting, fun, and challenging as possible. Open your eyes to the possibilities and dare yourself to move further... then to keep moving.