Ahh Tabatas. An interval that we all have a love hate relationship with.Â
With all that rest your mind starts to play tricks…the 20 seconds gets longer and longer and the 10 seconds get shorter and shorter. In the end, all you can do is grind it out and hope that 8th round comes soon.
Now here’s the best part, you can do a Tabata with ANY exercise. Yes that’s right, any exercise. So the next time you can’t make it in, or you’re on the road or whatever other “reason” you come up with for not going to SPARK, remember, there is always Tabatas…squats, pushups, sit ups, some type of jumping, sprinting etc. Any more excuses for not working out? I didn’t think so.
 Workout of the Day:
With a continuous running clock -
75 Snatch Balance - start light and get heavy as possible
Has this little guy been staring you in the face? Everytime a certain exercise comes up on the board do you get that sick feeling inside? THEN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!Â
I’ve seen the looks in some of your eyes and I ‘ve heard the comments: “I will never be able to do that” or “why am I not getting any better at …”. Here’s your answer, yes, you will be able to do ‘that’ and you’re not getting any better because you aren’t doing anything to fix it!
I know that for some of you those Dynamax balls stare you in the face everytime you come in, for others its the skipping ropes, pull ups, box jumps, push ups etc etc etc…
Don’t be afraid of that goat! Grab that little bugger by the horns and wrestle him down. Practice and practice and practice some more and eventually what you hate the most becomes your strongest skill.
We believe in you…yes, all of you. Its time for you to start believing in yourself.
Unless you write down a goal it is not a goal its a dream. Our goal for the fundraiser is $20,000.
All of the donations will be going to the Christmas Bureau of Edmonton to feed the less fortunate this Christmas. A worthy cause and one we would like to make a huge contribution to! The CBE has told me they need $1.5 million this year to help all of those in need. Remember folks, these aren’t people that are half a world away…these are our co-workers, neighbors and friends.
Remind those making pledges that anything over $10 will get a tax receipt. As well, if you happen to be visiting this page, feel free to call us and stop by to do your part.
Click poster to enlarge…may take a sec.
Yesterday’s Workout (scale as necessary):
“Fight Gone Bad”…sort of
5×30 sec each exercise, 30sec rest between rounds:
Ever wonder how much you could safely lift off the ground? Ever get worried when you have to move a couch, tv or some other ridiculouly heavy object…the people at SPARK don’t! In fact our participants LOVE heavy things.
Not only did we get heavy the other day, everyone was cheering and going nuts as Personal Records (PRs) were smashed. Even some of the newbies got after it and put up some impressive numbers.Â
Do you need to be able to lift 200 lbs? Yes. Will you do that right away? Probably not. But you just might after a few months and yes, you will be ecstatic when you can finally do it AND go beyond.
What? You heard Dead Lifts are bad for you? Wrong! It is without question one of the most important lifts there is.  In fact, the “Dead Lift” was once called the “Health Lift”. To quote Greg Glassman, “If you cannot Dead Lift you are injured but asymptomatic”.
Here’s a couple of SPARKers getting up some big numbers. Karie T, mother of 2 getting 225 lbs off the ground and ‘Brownie’ lifting 435 lbs. I know there were some bigger lifts (Ollie at 475) but sorry guys, I didn’t get pics!
Only a couple of you know my friend Mike Lafrance. And even less of you know that he was one of those people that helped get SPARK open.Â
He was an electrician and completely rewired this entire gym, the washrooms, helped put up new lights and got the motion sensors to work. He of course did this after long days at work in his spare time and I thank him for that. I’m also greatful to his wife for sacrificing her time with him to share him with me so I could get this place up and running. Â
Mike was buried today at the age of 26…he passed away two days after his birthday.
He was a great guy that was always willing to help a buddy out no matter what. Mike loved loved his wife Nancy and two girls Ava and Ella more than anything and we spent all the hours wiring SPARK sharing stories of our families. We’ll miss you.
If you have 2 1/2 minutes to spare watch this video…
Pretty amazing eh? These guys only workout on the street! No fancy gyms, no machines, no gimmicks…wait a minute…sounds a bit like what we do here at SPARK!Â
We may not do stuff this cool but it just goes to show that a minimal amount of equipment and a bit of creativity / direction is all that’s needed to acheive real results.
One of the biggest classes so far…17 people and it was AWESOME! It may sound a little creepy but I love it when SPARK is full of tired, sweaty, smiling ATHLETES - yes athletes. You can’t work as hard as we do and not consider yourself an athlete.
And it never fails; the harder someone works, the happier they are when they leave. Maybe they’re just relieved to finally be leaving but I think its because they know what they just accomplished. You can’t help but feel great after getting your butt whooped at SPARK!
Its funny, I get asked all the time if what we do here at SPARK gets easier. No, no it doesn’t. And here’s why…Each time you come you will push yourself just a little harder, maybe lift a little heavier, take a few less rests and secretly you just might be trying to beat the person that has been whooping your ass for the last month! You won’t find deeper motivation than competiton, personal pride and satisfaction.
So it may never get “easier” BUT your recovery goes through the roof, you will eventually achieve elite levels of fitness, you will be stonger, more agile etc, etc, etc…and you will have fun doing it.
Kim knows a lot about the body - how it works, how to push it and how to get the most out of it. He has worked with professional athletes and knows what it takes to be successful at that level. If you want to be faster, stronger and more powerful go to SPARK."
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