![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Once a month, my martial arts school has a very intense, heavy conditioning class that we refer to as Iron Body class. It involves both conditioning the muscles and cardiovascular system with exercises, and conditioning the body to be able to absorb a blow to most of the major target areas (head and groin are the two significant exceptions). Normally this class would be held on the last Wednesday of the month, but considering the upcoming holidays, we decided to hold it last night instead.
There were three points at which I was drawing amusing comments from the students.
The first was after doing an exercise called "dog kicks" (known in some places as "fire hydrant drills"). You begin on all fours, then raise one knee like a dog at a fire hydrant, and lift the hand on that same side and place it behind your back to help your balance. You then extend the leg, hold for a second, then bring it back... lather, rinse, repeat. We do these at the start of most classes, but we do more of everything during Iron Body class... plus we had someone who's been out for a while and hasn't had time to get used to them again. He did manage to complete them -- barely -- and when we were done, he glared over at me and announced that I was NOT a nice man!
Next came the Chinese Situps, so named because the person who taught them to me said they got it from a member of the Chinese Olympic swimming team. They resemble a Pilates exercise called Teasers, although the low back stays pressed against the floor. This way you work upper, middle, and lower abs all at the same time. Once you're in position, you hold it for... however long Sensei decides. ;-)
I've been gradually increasing the duration for these... and did I mention that on Iron Body night, we do more of everything?
This time, before we started, I announced that we would hold them for 60 seconds, then rest for 10, then hold them for 40 seconds, rest for then, then a final set of 20 seconds -- 2 minutes, total. Unfortunately, the 60 seconds was enough that even I was getting tired at the end of it, and during the first 10-second break I made a comment to the effect of, "Me and my big mouth!" (as in, if I hadn't already stated what the durations would be, I could change them)... and from one of the other students, I heard, "Yes, sir!" lol
The last one was something called a Stomach Circle, or "the pink-belly exercise." However many of us there are, we stand in an inward-facing circle. It starts off with me giving a back-handed smack to the person next to me, who passes it along to the next person, and so on until it comes around the circle to me. We'll go around the circle a few times, then I'll switch directions and we'll go the other way. After a while, your stomach starts turning pink, even through the heavier uniforms.
We'd been going around the circle a few times when the person to my right started trying to hit me harder and harder, with a frustrated look on his face. Finally he looked at me and said, "What the HELL are you doing? I can't seem to hit you!"
I did a quick double-take, then laughed. Without realizing it, I'd started doing one of the "chi armor" techniques over my stomach, and it was driving him crazy because he could tell his strikes weren't getting through like he thought they should be.
And yes, I was nice and showed them what I was doing and how to do it... AFTER we finished, of course!
It was a good class, and I was proud of how they did -- and that I was able to push myself harder than them.
There were three points at which I was drawing amusing comments from the students.
The first was after doing an exercise called "dog kicks" (known in some places as "fire hydrant drills"). You begin on all fours, then raise one knee like a dog at a fire hydrant, and lift the hand on that same side and place it behind your back to help your balance. You then extend the leg, hold for a second, then bring it back... lather, rinse, repeat. We do these at the start of most classes, but we do more of everything during Iron Body class... plus we had someone who's been out for a while and hasn't had time to get used to them again. He did manage to complete them -- barely -- and when we were done, he glared over at me and announced that I was NOT a nice man!
Next came the Chinese Situps, so named because the person who taught them to me said they got it from a member of the Chinese Olympic swimming team. They resemble a Pilates exercise called Teasers, although the low back stays pressed against the floor. This way you work upper, middle, and lower abs all at the same time. Once you're in position, you hold it for... however long Sensei decides. ;-)
I've been gradually increasing the duration for these... and did I mention that on Iron Body night, we do more of everything?
This time, before we started, I announced that we would hold them for 60 seconds, then rest for 10, then hold them for 40 seconds, rest for then, then a final set of 20 seconds -- 2 minutes, total. Unfortunately, the 60 seconds was enough that even I was getting tired at the end of it, and during the first 10-second break I made a comment to the effect of, "Me and my big mouth!" (as in, if I hadn't already stated what the durations would be, I could change them)... and from one of the other students, I heard, "Yes, sir!" lol
The last one was something called a Stomach Circle, or "the pink-belly exercise." However many of us there are, we stand in an inward-facing circle. It starts off with me giving a back-handed smack to the person next to me, who passes it along to the next person, and so on until it comes around the circle to me. We'll go around the circle a few times, then I'll switch directions and we'll go the other way. After a while, your stomach starts turning pink, even through the heavier uniforms.
We'd been going around the circle a few times when the person to my right started trying to hit me harder and harder, with a frustrated look on his face. Finally he looked at me and said, "What the HELL are you doing? I can't seem to hit you!"
I did a quick double-take, then laughed. Without realizing it, I'd started doing one of the "chi armor" techniques over my stomach, and it was driving him crazy because he could tell his strikes weren't getting through like he thought they should be.
And yes, I was nice and showed them what I was doing and how to do it... AFTER we finished, of course!
It was a good class, and I was proud of how they did -- and that I was able to push myself harder than them.
Tags: