Martha Stewart was vacationing in the Bahamas recently and got her first taste of the bag…

Now, Stephen, Ivan and the Bulgarian Bag are making their national television debut tomorrow morning on the Martha Stewart show, live at 10 AM EST! Find out what channel and time it’s on in your area and check out the preview for tomorrow’s show now!

Martha Stewart, The Exercise Show

You’ll see the Competitive Performance Strategies, Inc. (CPS) logo on just about all of our stuff.  From head to toe, we proudly display this symbol as our identity and our ideology.  CPS is the parent company of the IBBC and provides the foundation from which the IBBC’s principles are founded.  The basis of the CPS logo is the Austrian Coat of Arms.  While we are not Austrian, the imagery spoke loudly to us so we revised and modified the elements to symbolize the beliefs and tenets of CPS and IBBC:

• The Eagle: A symbol of freedom in word and thought and an opportunity for a full and free expansion into the boundless space of the future afforded by CPS’s spiritual, mental, and physical training principles
• The double bicep pose of the Eagle: Superhuman strength and will
• The escutcheon: Represents the war shield of CPS whose supporters are known for their chivalry and code of honorable conduct
• The crown: Represents the power within us to attain great strength through our spirit, mind, and body
• The broken chains: Freedom and the break from traditional and restrictive training tools and methods
• The Bulgarian Bag and Kettlebell: Some of the functional and non-traditional tools used to enhance our strength and power

We warrior types need some quality recreation from time to time.  We need to recharge our batteries, spend some time in fellowship with our fellow warriors sharing our stories and experiences.  We need to provide a little companionship to our families, and make them feel a part of our team.  Sometimes it is motivating and inspiring to get together, and put on our learning caps, and pick up some new tools.

The Total Warrior Camp was designed with those goals in mind.  We have brought in talented trainers from around the country, we have programmed some great opportunities to train, blow off steam, and give our families time to bond and become part of our warrior heritage.  It gives us time to strengthen our legion.

The facility will provide for outstanding leisure time for you and your family.  It is a short hop from NYC or PHL, so it’s easy to get to.  It is a great break for the family to play while we train, then bond together as we draw them closer to our calling and passion.

As servants, we don’t do this for ourselves alone.  We have chosen the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund as our recipient of our continuing generosity.  We all know those who haven’t made it home from a shift.  We never forget, unless we will be forgotten.

In service, in fellowship, we look forward to meeting you and your family with us.

All proceeds from the Total Warrior Camp will be donated to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, a worthy cause indeed!

Download the event flyer: Total Warrior Event Flyer

For more info on the Total Warrior Camp and registration, visit http://www.apc360zone.com/25.html or email totalwarrior@apc360zone.com

Because many of the participants are already certified trainers, I really appreciated everyone’s upbeat attitudes and taking a step back for a moment to be in the student seat for the day. When you’re used to being in control of the training situation, getting the opportunity to step into a subordinate position provides a chance to view from a different perspective how we might approach our training and continuing education. In many of these workshops, the experience levels vary greatly, from rookie trainers eager to try out everything, to seasoned coaches who have worked with professional athletes.

So how do you provide stimulation for everyone, from the beginner to the veteran trainer?  Because of human nature, we often get wrapped around the axle with what we know, and what we do best.   We become compartmentalized in our training methods and beliefs and think, “I know enough.”   In my opinion, once you believe that your professional growth will stagnate, you will start to lose passion.  You get caught of the continual loop of doing the same thing for client after client, over and over again.  You get into a routine of complacency. This complacency often affects our attitudes, not only toward our profession, but unfortunately, toward our clients as well.

I’ve attended countless workshops and certifications and have gotten plenty of hands-on time with different modalities.  However, most often very little, if any, attention is directed on how to apply this new information.  Even worse, they don’t even mention or provide validation as to why you would want to learn their stuff anyway!  Just a bunch of movements and variations on the same movements, with technique thrown in there every once in a while.  So this brings me back to the question, “How do you stimulate the beginner and advanced trainer in the same venue?” My approach is to provide information and knowledge about training principles that apply not only to the Bulgarian Bag, but training in general, based in science and research and continually supported by real-life experience.  This means that my lectures apply and are transferable to all modalities of training, but especially the Bulgarian Bag because of its unique shape that provides more benefits than almost any other training tool out there.  (Yes, shameless plug.)  I’ve received a tremendous amount of positive feedback from students who have attended my courses regarding my teaching style.  Beginners tell me they walk away with new information, techniques and insight.  Advanced trainers tell me that I helped them to start connecting the similarities of training techniques and protocols across different modalities and draw insight on how to use this new tool and information to transform or better his or her current training style, beliefs and attitudes.

Why do I approach my courses in this way? Why don’t I just talk about how cool Dynamic Load Based (DBL) training is and how it is the best solution for all your training needs and how no other tools can do what mine do? Frankly, whilst this may be true, I know it not best way to educate and share information.

People (i.e. our clients and athletes) come to us with a need.  The need is often to stimulate some type of emotional response.  Like, “When I lose all this weight I will feel better than ever.”  Or,  “It will be amazing when I finish my first triathlon.”  So really, we are solution providers directed by the goals, objectives and desires of our clients or athletes.  If we continually use only one or two tools in our tool box, then we are limited in what we can help them build or create.  There needs to be a balanced solution which often requires the use of many types of varying modalities, driven by goals, objectives and a potential vast list of other considerations like age, current health, nutrition, physical limitations and lifestyle factors.

The format of my courses are ever changing; there probably will not be two that are exactly the same.  As I continually grow and educate myself, I am passionate about sharing that knowledge, particularly as it relates to DLB training and training in general.  I strive to be a mentor and pass this wisdom on to the students in my courses, and even the clients and athletes I work with on a day-to-day basis.

It is always my goal to exceed expectations for the participants of IBBC events. I am often shocked at how often some of the experienced trainers in the audience are not familiar with basic training principles that should be ingrained in their thoughts and put into daily application.  Because I cannot make any assumptions as to the level of comprehension of these sometimes complex principles, I enjoy supplying new insights and providing refreshers on some basics.  This allows many students to build on foundational elements and continue to expand the endless opportunities to provide outstanding service to their clients while adding a new tool to their kit.

Again, thanks to the talented group this weekend, I look forward to seeing you at a Certification level course!

• Sean Arnold
• Michelle, Caplan DC
• Queruvin Cruz
• Ryan Dantes
• Peter D’Epiro
• Greg Gaviola
• Maria Kyong
• Paige Pagni
• Yasuko Shiga
• Maimi Thomander
• Michael Stephenson
• Adam Baeckler

• BBS Coaches:
• Katy Jercich
• Maurizio Tangari
• Pinita Maberry

Check out some great photos from this event, and become our friend on Facebook.

If you’re interested in hosting an IBBC workshop or event at your location, please contact me.

Earlier this week, I headed up north to Wolf Fitness Systems in Salinas, California to work with an outstanding group of fitness professionals, namely the TACFIT crew with Scott Sonnon, Alberto Gallazzi, and John Wolf for the TACFIT instructor certification course.  I had great time with the group and I always enjoy listening to engrossing teachers like Scott.  After these events, I always like to come back and jot down and share some notes from the session.

Here are five things that you would have picked up had you been there:

1. Incorporate breathing techniques to facilitate recovery between sets.  What this means is that by controlling your breathing, you can consciously slow your heart rate to facilitate recovery between sets in order to have sustained bouts of activity at a given intensity level.
2. TACFIT-style push-ups.  This modified style requires a lot more leg and core activation in order to properly perform a full-range push-up, necessitating increased body awareness and neuromuscular activation.  Look out… this style will soon become a requirement for passing the IBBC spin test!
3. Working with Scott, Alberto and John was a great way to see our common vision applied in different ways.  In other words, whether you’re performing the Bulgarian Bag or TACFIT training protocols, the objectives of working with different modalities to increase muscular endurance, increase capacity for work under high heart-rate conditions, and maintain mental toughness and focus are shared. All will further benefit your training by increasing neuromuscular efficiency which is key for any tactical athlete or sport-specific training.
4. Recovering from stress is what allows your body to adapt.  This means that you need to allow sufficient recovery time in order to increase muscular development and CNS integration.  Remember, your body prefers efficiency, so you’ve got to appropriately stress the body in order to make it adapt.
5. Couple simple movements together to create a complex training effect (CTE).  “CTE states that when you couple simple movements together, the synergistic effect is greater than if the individual exercises were performed independent.  Complexity isn’t complication; complexity is the art of smart simplicity.”

South China Morning Post‘s Jeannette Wang, Health Editor, recently had the opportunity to train with Kahei. While initially intimidated by our brown friends, Jeanette quickly realized the tremendous benefits of Bulgarian Bag training and will hopefully be back for more to improve her timing, rhythm, and flexibility like not other tool can.  Click on the image to enlarge and read the article.

Kahei was also featured in Next Magazine 壹周刊(29 September 2011, issue#1125) which ran a 3-page story on his newly launched KBT program. In this article, Kahei introduces the profound benefits of Pure Fitness’ exclusive KBT program, especially in strengthening core muscles and weight loss. It also includes his demo of using Bulgarian Bag movements to train the core, coordination and power at the same time which distinguishes itself from traditional training tools such as dumbbells. Basic KBT exercises were introduced through trial experience and sharing of a female total beginner, highlighting how achievable, effective and challenging she feels. Click on the images to enlarge and read the article.

Oh… you don’t understand Portuguese? At one point in this interview, Andre is talking about his fight vs Rousimar Palhares and he says he knew the guy would eventually get tired but that he [Andre] would not because he was well trained. He also thanks me by name for the Bulgarian Bag and strength training program that was critical for his success. He also mentions that the training was very good and during a point in time of our training, he was performing a lot of heavy squats and increasing his overall strength and power.

This is a great testimonial to the benefits of Bulgarian Bag training coupled with a solid strength conditioning program to achieve remarkable results.  Congratulations, Andre!

Fitness review: Getting into the swing of things with the Bulgarian Bag

By Sarah Fitzmaurice

As an active individual always on the lookout for new ways to workout I was intrigued when I heard about the Bulgarian bag, which works out the upper-body. And while I didn’t fancy ending up looking like a wrestler, I’m never one to turn down a challenge. So I called upon the services of celebrity personal trainer Stuart Amory to put me through my paces…

What is it?
The Bulgarian Bag was created by, not surprisingly, a Bulgarian named Ivan Ivanov in 2005 to help train Olympic wrestlers.  It has been adopted by fitness trainers in recent years as a versatile piece of weight training equipment.

Getting into the swing of it: Sarah tries out the Bulgarian Bag spin 

The weight of the bag varies but the idea is to spin the piece of kit around your head which isolates muscles in your torso, arms, shoulders and back.

By swinging the weight around you are forced to maintain a strong core which works all your upper body muscles.

Other more traditional exercises including squats, lunges pushups and bicep curls can also be performed with the bag.

New kit: The piece of kit are half moon shaped with handles to enable the swing 

What to expect

The bag is a half moon shape and at first I wasn’t quite sure how to pick it up or what I would be doing with it.

Stuart explained that I would be performing a series of spins but given the high intensity nature of the exercise these would be short sharp bursts broken up by interval sprints.

The first time I picked up the bag it felt quite light and I was dubious about how hard the exercise was going to push me.

Stuart demonstrated the swing and asked me to give it a go.

It felt really awkward at first and I found it hard to pick it up swing it around my head and I felt myself being pulled in all sorts of directions making it hard to stand upright.

Getting the hang of it: Sarah learns how to swing the bag around her body for an high intensity upper body workout

Once I had my stance sorted I concentrated on the movement.

Initially Stuart told me to concentrate on making sure one arm was performing the work as I lifted the bag upwards, if I was swinging it from the left side of my body around to the right this meant my left arm was doing the work while the right arm was loose.

Then as the bag moved around my head to switch so that my right arm was pulling the bag and my left arm wasn’t doing much work.

The second tip was to follow the bag with my eyes so as I was swinging the bag upwards to follow it then blink as it moved around my back and turn my head to open my eyes as it swung down the otherside of my body.

The final piece of advice was to focus on the force the pull motion going up and the push motion going down.

After implementing Stuart’s direction the spin became more fluid and I felt like I was getting the hang of it. I performed five spins from left to right then switched direction to perform five more.

The professional: Stuart demonstrates the correct way to perform the Bulgarian bag spin 

 

Fluid movement: Stuart shows how looking the direction of the bag improves the spin 

So far so good, and I completed a set of sprint intervals before getting back to the bag. But my enthusiasm quickly deteriorated when I was asked to perform five spins each side followed by ten spins both ways.

Fifteen times doesn’t sound like much but fatigue quickly set in and I realised what Stuart meant when he said it was a high-intensity piece of kit.

The Verdict

While I felt I hadn’t performed a huge amount of swings during the session the amount of aching I experienced in the days that followed the session was a clear indication of just how hard the bag worked my upper body.

In fact, I hadn’t experienced doms, delayed onset muscle soreness, like that very often in my life – my upper body felt like it was in a clamp.

That being said I certainly felt stronger afterwards and worked muscles I rarely use in my day to day fitness regimes.

Explaining why the Bulgarian bag is such a useful and unique tool Stuart says: ‘It pulls your body in all sorts of ways making you unstable which means your body has to work hard to keep you upright.’

‘You have to be so strong to hold it together and stand straight.’ The downside is that grip proves problematic after performing 40 swings I could barely hold onto it and could feel it slipping out of my hands.

And it isn’t a piece of equipment for the faint-hearted.

Stuart says: ‘Its a tough piece of kit, it’s one of my ‘man-up’ pieces of equipment, but the rewards are massive because it is such a high intensity workout.’

To contact Stuart Armory email stuart@inkilterfitness.co.uk or call  07788448520. Training sessions start from £80 per session or £100 for 10 group session.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2033857/Fitness-review-Getting-swing-working-Bulgarian-Bag.html#ixzz1XrpdAq6K