What Would Kettle Do?

Hello all,

Well, I just flew in from Tokyo and boy are my arms tired (silence for applause). The trip was one of the most rewarding and productive of my life. Thank you to everyone who attended and supported the workshop. We did some great lifting, ate some amazing food, and got some new ink. Now the jet lag is beginning to fade and it is back to work.

Over the next few days I will be puting up information on some new seminars I will be teaching. Think of them as condensed workshops. I will be talking more and we will be lifting less. The idea here is to charge less money and take up less time but still pass on key concepts. I will still be teaching the full 1 and 2 day workshops but less frequently than before. I will post some links in the near future. I hope that you all will enjoy the new seminars.

kettle,

Hi Everyone,

So the Tokyo trip is winding down and we have a few more things to do today but I would say it has been an amazing success! Day two of the Hofu-City workshop was super-fun and by the time we left ( after the Karaoke at the hostess bar hehe)

we had made friends that I feel will last forever. It was a bittersweet and emotional goodbye. We will be back, no doubt.

Yesterday was a whirlwind of meetings and walking through Tokyo. By the end of the day Nazo and I had a huge sense of accomplishment when we looked at all the work we got done, even though we took time to stop at a video arcade to play some cutting edge Japanese video games (holy cow!).

Today is a slower day. I’ve got a date with a Thomas Inch Dumbbell (We’ll see how that goes) and another date that I will write about later But for now I just wanted to talk about coffee in the hotel.

I know this looks harmless enough but try to figure it out BEFORE coffee….

Because even though this just looks like instant coffee I assure you it is not

It needed instructions, and I don’t mean they were printed on the package and I didn’t look at them like I didn’t need them, I really needed them and could not read it so I’m looking at the pictures like a monkey with a plastic banana.

Brilliant! This is so Japaneasy Fresh drip coffee in a self-contained disposable package. I was so impressed I had to write about it.

Mmmmmmmm,,,,, I think I will have another cup

Kettle,

Yo Internet,

It’s such an amazing feeling when you get to see the results of hard work. Nazo and I have been lucky enough to see how far so many of the students have come since last year. They really look amazing! I can’t believe how much they have improved and how strong they have all gotten. To be honest, it puts a little pressure on me because if I teach something wrong I will definitely see it the next time I show up here. They practice everything until the achieve perfection.

We had some new toys at this workshop. Tons of bells, a few Indian Clubs, Tires, a giant heavybag, a 20kg custom Hokkakubo, and a bunch of heavy water jugs. Nazo and I got to see how these guys train and it was very impressive (the word mountain is involved). After the workshop it was time to vent a little and we went to eat and drink some beer at a local Korean BBQ place here in Hofu. It was a great time with wonderful people and great food. Some of the guys got together and presented Nazo and I with a few gifts. They gave us some local food treats and a couple of handmade kettles with our motto painted on the top of the box. It was one of those moments when I was glad to be too much of a man to cry These are some of the nicest and most considerate people I have ever met. It’s a shame that one of them asked for “more lift” today, now they all have to die. Oh well, I guess we all have it coming, I know I do.

Ok, off to day 2 of the workshop. I hope everyone makes it because there is a rumor we will be going out tonight. I was told there is someone who wants to meet the “giant one” I am assuming he means me but you never know.

Kettle,

I have turned into a public transit boy all of a sudden. I took the bus to the train, the train to the plane, the plane to another train and here I am in Hofu-City Japan. Total travel time is (about) 30 hours. I am not sure if it is a good thing or a bad thing but I am pretty sure that there is nobody here like me.

1) I don’t have a surgical mask on.

2) I’m a giant.

3) Judging by everybody’s clothes here I dress like a sexyy pilgrim.

It’s a total trip. There is a McDonald’s here but no Starbucks (just to give you a bearing) There is an Italian restaurant but we opted for the noodle shack. There is a mall here called SATY that may be the most active place I have ever seen even though it manages to keep up its small town charm. When I went inside the people aimed to please/stared at me without blinking for extended periods of time.

Last night I was walking back to the hotel and passed 3 uniform wearing schoolgirls trying to ride one bicycle together. We heard them before we saw them, giggling like a scene out of a Tarantino flick, they halted when they noticed us and I ended up posing for a picture with them. We could hear them giggling as we walked off into the night. What a trip This morning we are off to teach the first day of the 2 day OKC workshop. We know most of the participants already and I am looking forward to seeing them again. I can only hope they enjoy the learning as much as I enjoy the teaching.

Even though I wish I were a better lifter than I am I have confidence in my ability to transfer what little I do know to people who want to learn it. This is going to be a big year, a new reservoir of information has been located I will do my best to absorb and distribute the info. Sometimes I think not being a “naturally gifted gs athlete” is an advantage, it keeps me looking and learning. It is easy to stay humble when you are constantly meeting people who are better than you at doing something you want to do well.

Time to give it a shot today!

Oh, and I can’t find my baseball, have you seen it?

kettle,

Hello Interwebbers,

Tomorrow Nazo and I are heading back to Japan. It is a little different for us this time because we will only be stopping in Tokyo before heading down to Hofu City via bullet train. Also, I have never been there in the winter before so it should be beautiful. Last year Nazo and I went to Hofu and were stranded by a terrible storm and forced to hitchhike our way from around Hiroshima to Hofu which took us forfreakingever. It was well worth it though because we got to meet some awesome people and I got to see a part of the Japanese countryside that a longislandboy like me has no business seeing. I am looking forward to this new adventure and I will keep the blog posted on our whereabouts

Until then, I will try to stay out of trouble (no promises on Nazo)

kettle,

Hello interwebers,

Here is a cut and past of the email I got from UNICEF regarding your donations from the Kettles for Haitian relief workshop.

Dear John, I’m sending you photos taken this past Saturday at the Foyer L’escale Orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. What you see here is what’s happening all over Haiti. Because of your rapid, decisive response to our appeals, thousands of children are alive today. Look into their faces. Full of life and hope for a better tomorrow: © UNICEF/2010/Tidey UNICEF staff pouring safe drinking water for children. © UNICEF/2010/Tidey Children at the Foyer L’escale Orphanage. They are alive today because UNICEF was there: distributing clean water, providing shelter, protecting children from abuse and exploitation. This week alone, UNICEF: Launched a campaign to immunize 500,000 children against measles, diphtheria, and tetanus; Provided clean drinking water to over a half a million people daily; Installed latrines, bringing the total of new sanitation facilities to 750; and Delivered personal kits to 50,000 children without parental care. We are now preparing to face the serious risks and challenges that lie before us in the weeks ahead. And with 40% of the Haitian population under the age of 14, this is a children’s emergency. These children need to be found, fed, and kept safe from abuse and exploitation. But just for today, I wanted to show you the very real impact you’re having on the children of Haiti. From all of us at the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, thank you. Caryl M. Stern President & CEO U.S. Fund for UNICEF

We did good guys!

kettle,

Good Morning Internet,

One of my friends decided to quit smoking and she is using Kettlebell Sport as her nicotine patch. I am apparently the one who gets to apply that patch, wait for it to stick to the skin real good and then rip it off. Luckily, I get to do a little bit of this every day so sometimes I will ripitoffrealfast and other times I will take my time and recite long lyrical poetry that I wrote when I was drunk as I slowly remove the patch. I mean seriously, I’m a giver; I’m here to help, you know, to spread the love.

Juliet is one bad lady! She swears (a lot!), is covered in tattoos and can’t seem to pass up the opportunity to antagonize her coach while he is writing her programs. It is almost as if she is trying to drown out her longing with the much more excellent and fulfilling pain, Kettlepain or the stronger version Kettlepain CQ.

Juliet, I am with you and as your friend I want you to know that I will punish you until you can totally forget about those bastard cigarettes. They are jerks anyway. It’s not that I enjoy this, far from it, I just want to help. I’m proud of you, don’t quit the quitting or I’ll kill you (semicolon winkyface)

kettle,

Escaping the venom,

   I think I’m running a little hot so I’m takeing off to the mountains for a few days to get away from it all. It should be fun, camping near the snow line and building big fires always helps me get my mind off of business. So, see you all in a few days. (Ok, there may be some kettles there

kettle,

Hello Internet,

On Saturday we had a very successful workshop to raise money for Haitian relief. I am happy to say that the workshop made $1500 that was donated to UNICEF yesterday. We had some great people attend the workshop as well as people who bought slots even though they could not come. We had people donate DVD’s for raffle/sale and we had the space donated to us when we grew a little to big for the loft.

In addition to all that I have received emails from friends of mine from all over who decided to do their own fundraising workshops and bootcamps. I have noticed all over facebook that people are doing this everywhere and it makes me so proud to be part of the kettlebell community. Giving is one thing but you all are actually doing. There is a distinction to be made there and you all should be very proud.

We had a great time and we will get some pics up soon but I only have this one right now so enjoy I also want to thank The people who supported this workshop and those who attended. I think we did something good!

IKFF Rankings click here

That is a lot of weight. Those are some monster numbers. People are going to be pissed off.

Believe me when I tell you how far away MS feels for me. I am an “athlete” with low endurance and no way to rest during a set. My hamstrings are so tight that I can’t consistently lockout and every single day I have to work on it just to see the smallest (and I mean SMALLEST) improvement. Sometimes I think this sport really may not be for me. To be honest, I may have already quit if it wasn’t for the critics. I try to teach people to think of it as 100 sets of 1 rep but that is not my monster. No rest means one great big set. 1 set, 100 reps, 150 reps, 200 reps. It’s like a mountain of weight and numbers. I have to find some trail to get to the top. For now, my trail is straight at it and upward!

You have to find a way. If this is what you really want you cannot be discouraged. These numbers are monsters, and they are formidable but not unattainable. I know it comes easier to some people than others but they are not the ones I want at the base of the mountain looking up and heading out with me. I want the ones that have been turned away because their arms are short or their hips are low, or they cry, or their bellies get in the way. I want the lifters that want it more. Those are the shitkickers! You can keep your former NCAA Division I athlete, I want the guy she dumped in college. You can keep your quarterback, I’ll take the one he never knew existed. These are my people, these are the people who will break these numbers against their wills.

I understand the idea of feeding the sport. I know that we all want the sport to grow but I have to ask, what good is it if it doesn’t mean anything? In my opinion it should be hard. It should be almost impossible, I know it is to me. I don’t think that everyone who gets into a sport should be guaranteed success on it’s highest level. That needs to be earned with a combination of talent, work, and will. Champions sacrifice everything, we know this. At the same time, there is no shame in competing just to compete. Way more people run marathons than win marathons.

I know that my goal just got harder. It means that I will have to go places I never knew I had to go to make it, I’m cool with that.

I love my girls. They are a crazy bunch but I have absolute faith in every one of them.

I don’t know (obviously) every KB lifter in the country but off the top of my head I can think of 3 women who can hit the new MS rank by the end of the year. They are the great ones and we all know who they are. Only 3? Do we even have 3 male MS’ in the states?

We are all late starters. We are trained mostly through certification weekends and online programming. Some of us have coaches but mostly we learn second hand, more obstacles, more monsters.

Well, This is what we do with monsters round here:

kettle,