SL/PE1 changed?

Sven Ravnstag said:

I don't think you got it.

No, I do understand. Try Russian Twists using just your core muscles to rotate your upper torso while you are holding onto your free weight with loose grip.

By the time you get up to SL/PE14 and PE15 your core will be much stronger than it ever has been.

You might want to correct the text for SL as it appears to people browsing the course website too. The mention of the pancake flexibility is there also.

Cheers

Coach Sommer said:

Please send me the link and location of that verbiage and I will have it changed.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Rayne-William said:

No, I do understand.

I really don't think you do. I was joking about how there's always a complaint for every requested, long awaited remedy.

I just tried the first three new SL exercises (PE1-3 and mobility) then I had to stop without a partner around to hold my legs.  For the russian twists it felt to me like a planche exercise more than a side lever exercise because my shoulders were on fire by the end of each set (using a 12 lb box of epsom salt I bought from costco yesterday, I think my kids took my weights and lost them).  I didn't feel much in my sides for PE1 (to be honest I don't know which muscles are the obliques, I assume they are on the sides).

In lieu of a partner, I will be using a stool and anchoring my feet underneath my dinning room table.  It's a little awkward but it works.

For the Russian Twists, were you moving your whole trunk or just your arms side to side?  

The obliques are indeed the side ab muscles.  Try this, which is essentially an unweighted R.Twist.  Sit in position, take your right arm and try to touch the farthest point of the floor on your left side.  Then repeat for the left arm.  That should get the trunk turned, and if you do 50-100 or so of these floor touches you'll definitely know where your obliques are.

Lower the weight and focus on keeping the torso upright.

You have to remember your arm is a lever here, so it's experiencing 12 pounds X the length of your arm in inches. That's quite alot of force pretty quickly.

Try to get the form down with no weight or only 5 pounds.

You should be able to feel your side abs working.

Your obliques start just above your hip bone if you want to feel your side to get a physical understanding of them. The upper portion go up your ribcage about a third of the way. With Russian twists you'll also work the muscles in between your upper rib cage

Sensei JP said:

In lieu of a partner, I will be using a stool and anchoring my feet underneath my dinning room table.  It's a little awkward but it works.

 

For the Russian Twists, were you moving your whole trunk or just your arms side to side?  

 

The obliques are indeed the side ab muscles.  Try this, which is essentially an unweighted R.Twist.  Sit in position, take your right arm and try to touch the farthest point of the floor on your left side.  Then repeat for the left arm.  That should get the trunk turned, and if you do 50-100 or so of these floor touches you'll definitely know where your obliques are.

Thanks for the idea.  I just tried a stool and kitchen table but it was a bit shaky.  Maybe I'll have 2 or 3 of my sons sit on my legs at once, or just wait until my wife gets home later.

I did 50 floor touches on each side with no weight and I guess I felt it in my sides, but it's hard to tell because my hip flexors were burning so much (holding me up straight).  I really felt my sides working in PE2 and 3 though.

Nick, thanks for the reminder.  I was extending the box away from me to get over my knees so I suppose that made it even harder for my shoulders.  But I really do want to master the planche anyway.

*nods*.

I did these alot a few years back with a medicine ball (basketball training).

It definitely beats up your shoulders when you get up there in the reps/weight. That goes away after awhile. Coach recommended building up the weight on these once you have the form down and mastered it

Haha, ok now I know where my obliques are the day after doing the new PE1-3.  It feels like one of my kids is giving me a hug and won't let go.

Did week 11 of both PE2 and PE3 yesterday, and it is quite obvious that my obliques are alive today to say the least

What kind of back angle relative to the floor does SL/PE1 have? Hard to make out from the videos.

Also, is there a side crunch after the torso twists or am I to hold the body static and allow only my straight arms to lower the weight to the floor?

shughes89 said:

What kind of back angle relative to the floor does SL/PE1 have? Hard to make out from the videos.

Also, is there a side crunch after the torso twists or am I to hold the body static and allow only my straight arms to lower the weight to the floor?

Floor angle isn't so much important. Just have a 90 degree angle at the knees and 90 at the hips. That should give you the proper angle unless your femur are impressively long

I found that keeping the knees together works the obliques more, presumably because more of the rotation is coming from the torso, since the hips are more stable. 

Legs together, heels planted tends to work the best. For some people it might be better to have feet flat on the floor. You shouldn't feel it in your hip flexors too much.

Thanks for the update, I was really not believing the other progressions were targeting the correct muscles.

From the last time I posted, as I got into this part of the routine that same day, with the additional core2/Push/PullWorkout.  Looking back on my notes, I got into SL/PE1 with minor thoughts of mastery, due to the fact this particular routine I have not done for a LONG time, and back then it wasn't that serious (maybe a show and tell because I don't remember it being embedded in my old training routines).  

Some detail about my experience this workout.  As I was twisting, I felt my groin muscle(s) contracting to keep my feet, and ultimately my knees, together and stationary, as I started twisting from my left side (not a big deal, for it is being worked, not strained (I think)).  And my shoulders could not take it after a while (on the 4th set, after 8th rep (up to 12), fatigue kicked in).  A little disappointed, I didn't write the numbers that day, just lines indicating the 4 sets by the twelve repetitions (there we go, that was what I did in the routine without making note).  

I stated that I was doing 4 days a week, but the popping came back in my shoulder area, as I was doing "xiapengForward" mobility during Pushup on Monday.  Note: I went back into the 4 day per week thinking my body was ready to go there.  But with my recovery factor, not right now.  Using that particular mobility as a valuable indicator to go back to 3's (Mon/Wed/Fri), as I started this week.  

Anyway, going back into this SL/PE1, for it got hit on Wednesday's workout routine (I call core2/Legs/HeadstandWorkout).  At that time I thought about the same routine done last Thursday (4dayWeek_remember) and decided to lower the block to Block 1 for the going for mastery, my level was the first week of Block 2.  

Not saying I'm strong or anything, but going through this whole training with GymnasticBodies, I'm seeing my true strength potentials and will tell you all this:

DO NOT OVERESTIMATE YOUR STRENGTH LEVEL.  That may cause injury.  (trying to think how Coach Sommer mentions it.  Will find some time to listen to his Podcasts again for further info and inspiration.)

Looking forward to 2016 (Olympics, more on the Gymnastics (as if I'm training for it (actually, in due time, I'm looking forward to getting my Certificate(s)))...

Robert Davis said:

I just tried the first three new SL exercises (PE1-3 and mobility) then I had to stop without a partner around to hold my legs.  For the russian twists it felt to me like a planche exercise more than a side lever exercise because my shoulders were on fire by the end of each set (using a 12 lb box of epsom salt I bought from costco yesterday, I think my kids took my weights and lost them).  I didn't feel much in my sides for PE1 (to be honest I don't know which muscles are the obliques, I assume they are on the sides).

You should do the recommended PE1 with the mobility, and to not even think about PE2 or 3, until you reached Mastery for each (If anyone didn't mention this); unless you meant 'Block1/Week1'.  As for the amount, the recommended 5 lbs, reduce the epsom salt by half the weight, put spare content in another container.  Or simply buy a 5 lb weight and take it out of your kids allowance.

I felt my oblique muscles and the surrounding area, even upper part of my glutes, during seated (crossLegs) meditation.  And I'm starting to hold onto the seat for longer periods (used to do half hour at a time.  Recently listed to a 2 hour audiobook one late evening with stretching the legs out periodically and got back to crossLegs immediately.)

kingzlo said:

You should do the recommended PE1 with the mobility, and to not even think about PE2 or 3, until you reached Mastery for each (If anyone didn't mention this); unless you meant 'Block1/Week1'. 

 

Thanks kingzlo, I meant the block 3/ week 11 mastery level for each of PE1-3.  I was taking the advice from coach to start over with SL and I had some catch up to do since I was about to start F2 when the change happened.

Joshua Slocum said:

Feel free to keep doing ABH/R if you really want to. The purpose of the new progressions is to make progress faster and more consistent for those who did not experience consistent progress. It's a matter of efficiency: you can spend months grinding away at ABH/ABR, *then* work on your obliques, or work on your obliques now and experience quicker ABH progress later.

I've actually started doing various of the routines I've mastered, when I feel like it on my 'off days' (as I'm thinking of an evening I did the 2 main stretches and ABR.  Yesterday, I did a few headstands on my off day; HS/PE2 (I'm on level HS/PE3 (started on the wall during a few sets and now resisting it)).  It's a great 'pump' feeling to do the past workouts, as I understand to use it as a warm up, I'm thinking to go that route for some of the workouts; if not now sometime, when my body lets me know.

Robert Davis said:

Thanks kingzlo, I meant the block 3/ week 11 mastery level for each of PE1-3.  I was taking the advice from coach to start over with SL and I had some catch up to do since I was about to start F2 when the change happened.

Goes to show I have a long way to go for I'm on Block1/Week1.  Good to hear your reaching F2, I'm looking forward to reaching that level months to 1 year (or 2) from now.  

Note2Self: No rush, no injury ='s…  But still go as hard as one can.  I believe thats some form of proper growthMaintenance AND good form (very important).  Good to know the podcast lecture(s) from Coach is locked/locking in.

Don't know if someone has already addressed this but is there an upper limit of weight to be used on this exercise? I did mine with about 22lbs yesterday and I feel like maybe that was unnecessary. What the goal to aim for do you think? 5lbs wasn't much at all I found although to be fair I was just into f3 for sl before the change....

Coach mentioned 10-25lbs is fine. whichever gives us the best response from our obliques and build it upto 25lb from wherever you start. I did it with 5lb the first go and stopped my set. 10lb gave me a better response, so i counted mastery with that.

I did mastery for this today. Started with 4 kg then bumped up to 5 on set nr 2. Then I had to bump down to 4 kg again for the remaining sets    My shoulders were burning afterwards but I did not feel all that much in my sides, I will have to see if I feel any soreness in the next few days to know if I hit the muscles correctly.

You very likely need to use a different weight. You should absolutely feel your core doing the work. If you feel the shoulders at all, that should be a secondary soreness. You might try stretching out your chest and shoulders before doing these as well, just to be sure those muscles aren't just carrying tension and trying to takeover the movement. If your posture is more kyphosis that's definitely a possibility

Nick Roy said:

You very likely need to use a different weight. You should absolutely feel your core doing the work. If you feel the shoulders at all, that should be a secondary soreness. You might try stretching out your chest and shoulders before doing these as well, just to be sure those muscles aren't just carrying tension and trying to takeover the movement. If your posture is more kyphosis that's definitely a possibility

But is it even possible to achieve that close-to 90 degree twist of the torso, without using the core muscles? Cuz I was making sure that my shoulders/upper back were twisting as much as possible before lowering the weight down.

If I am wrong then I will of course try again with a lighter weight.