Quick Tip to Fix Kettlebell Shoulder Pain

Shoulder pain is something that has hindered my training on and off for the last decade.

During my college and pro sports career (I played college football and had a ‘cup of coffee’ in the NFL), I had MANY injuries. I also lifted really heavy weights for more than a decade. This is when it all started.

Shortly after my sports career ended, I lost a bunch of weight (I played offensive line and was around 300 pounds when I was playing … now I hover between about 244 and 246) and got into kettlebell training. And for a while, my shoulder pain kind of just went away …

And then, during training for my first RKC certification about five and a half years ago, my shoulder started to bother me again. One of the RKC testing requirements, as you may know, is 100 snatches with a 24k ‘bell in five minutes … so I did a LOT of KB snatching in preparation … and I did great at the cert weekend … but my shoulder was hating me afterwards.

Now, any time I do a lot of snatches, pressing, or any kind of repeated overhead work – my shoulder KILLS me … and to be honest, it sucks!

If you suffer from shoulder pain like I do, I’m betting that you’re looking for any solution you can find.

My friends Rick Kaselj and Mike Westerdal have a program called Fix My Shoulder Pain. I have used it, and enjoyed the benefits of it. The shoulder issues I was having are MUCH better. And it’s due to some simple tips. I want to share my favorite one with you here today …

** Rick and Mike’s Fix My Shoulder Pain System is on a 50% sale for the next couple of days, btw – click here to check it out

So … the quick fix to your kettlebell shoulder pain is (and this tip is straight from Rick) …

Warm Up The Muscles & Not Just The Joint

When it comes to warming up prior to a kettlebell workout, most people are not doing anything to prevent a shoulder injury – which we’ve learned is the most commonly hurt body part. You’ll see guys that are doing arm circles and arm crosses before their workout which is fine, but this does not hinder an injury. The circles and crosses help lubricate the joint but does nothing to prime up the actual muscles in the shoulder – which is what you need to do.

Quick Fix: During your warm up add resistance to wake up the muscles of the shoulder, rotator cuff and shoulder blade so they are ready to protect and prevent a shoulder injury. There are several exercises you can pick from but my favorite is the elbows back full range of motion bodyweight push-up with feet elevated on something.

Click here and scroll down a bit to see a demo of what I’m talking about:

=> Quick Fix Shoulder Warm Up

 

Now – this is obviously just one quick tip, and not a complete solution – but it is a great start. Try it before your next KB workout and let me know what you think.

(Also – Rick and Mike’s Fix My Shoulder Pain System is on a 50% sale for the next couple of days, btw – click here to check it out)

Thanks for reading, and talk soon –

Forest Vance
Level 2 Certified Russian Kettlebell Instructor

A Day at FVT Boot Camp [video]

Some of the most common questions we get asked about our program from new/prospective clients are –

“What do you guys actually DO at a FVT boot camp workout?”
“How is a session structured?”
“What kind of exercises do you do?”

Etc.

So we put together this 90 second video – “A Day at FVT Boot Camp” – that gives you a great idea of what you’d actually be doing in a typical boot camp session at the FVT studio. Check it out:

 

A Day at FVT Boot Camp

 

Hope that video gives you a clearer picture of what an FVT workout looks like!

And don’t forget – if you’d like to try out a boot camp workout at our studio, this Saturday is a PERFECT time … because we’re hosting a charity boot camp to benefit WEAVE, and it’s open to anyone and everyone who would like to attend.

You can donate as much or as little as you like to the cause, and experience a full boot camp workout at our studio! It’s a win-win for everyone 🙂

Click the link below to get more details and reserve your spot now:

=> FVT/WEAVE Charity Boot Camp Saturday, April 19th

April 2014 Challenge Workout

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The April 2014 FVT Challenge Workout is already underway – and we have several new grey and black band earners after just a few camps! Stay tuned for the full report at the end of the week.

 

Here’s a full rundown of the FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge (April’s Challenge Workout):

The FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge involves various feats and demonstrations of overall physical fitness. Upon completion of each band challenge level, the participant will recieve a special FVT Boot Camp wrist band.

The band challenge qualification requirements for each level are as follows:

Grey Band Qualification Requirements

  • :45 seconds non-stop kettlebell swings with PERFECT HardStyle form (16k for women, 24k for men)
  • 1:00 plank hold with PERFECT form
  • :15 pull up static hold (any grip, chin above bar) for women, one dead hang pull up (any grip, chin above bar) for men
  • Complete the FVT Tababta Burpee Challenge – You will do eight consecutive 20 seconds work/10 seconds rest intervals. You must complete at least five burpees in each interval period.

Black Band Qualification Requirements

  • :90 seconds non-stop kettlebell swings with PERFECT HardStyle form (16k for women, 24k for men)
  • 2:00 plank hold with PERFECT form
  • One dead hang pull up(any grip, chin above bar) for women, five dead hang pull ups (any grip, chin above bar) for men
  • Complete the FVT Tababta Burpee Challenge – You will do eight consecutive 20 seconds work/10 seconds rest intervals. You must complete at least seven burpees in each interval period.

Good luck to you on the FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge!

– The FVT Team

The Story of Tucker

Tucker is eight years old. He recently arrived at the WEAVE Safehouse (our March 19th Charity Boot Camp effort is to support this great cause) with his mom, Janice, after the violence at home became life-threatening.

In addition to physical abuse, both Janice and Tucker were repeatedly told they were stupid and insignificant.

Sadly, Tucker believed what he was hearing. This dejected, broken little boy lost his will to live. He didn’t laugh. He had no interest in games or playmates. He told his counselor, Autumn, that he wanted to kill himself.

At WEAVE, far too many children display signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidal tendencies as a result of violence in their homes.

Autumn immediately developed a therapeutic program for Tucker. She asked him to color a drawing of himself, much like the one here. She asked him to use colors to show how he was feeling. For the first time, Tucker spoke about the violence he experienced—an important breakthrough in his healing.

“Thank you for letting me talk about my mom and dad fighting,” Tucker told her and smiled—something he hadn’t done in months.

Help save the life of a boy like Tucker. Attend our charity boot camp effort at FVT on Saturday, March 19th @10am.

=> Click here to donate as much or as little as you like and reserve your spot at our March 19th Charity Boot Camp effort

 

100% of the funds raised at this event will go towards WEAVE – an organization that provides an array of services to women, men and children in the greater Sacramento region who have experienced domestic violence or have been sexually assaulted. WEAVE also works as part of the Rescue & Restore Coalition to support victims of human trafficking.

At the same time, this charity Boot Camp workout provides you with a chance to bring friends, family, coworkers, etc. to experience a full Boot Camp workout at the FVT studio.

Or, if you have been following us on our email newsletter, Facebook, etc. it’s also a great way to come and check out how we can help you reach your fitness goals.

It’s a win-win for everyone!

If you’d like to sign up, the process is simple. Simply click the link below, learn all the details about the event, donate to the cause – suggested donation is $15, you can donate as much or as little as you like – and you’ll be all signed up for a spot at our charity Boot Camp.

=> Click here to donate as much or as little as you like and reserve your spot at our March 19th Charity Boot Camp effort

 

Thanks, have a great day, and talk soon –

Forest Vance, owner, FVT Boot Camp and Personal Training

 

PS – Questions? Contact us HERE, or call 916.273.9366.

PPS – If you can’t make it to the Boot Camp but would still like to contribute, that is great as well! Just be sure to let us know when you donate that you will NOT be attending, as we’ll automatically assume that you will 😉

FVT Charity Boot Camp Saturday, April 19th @ 10am

Boy oh boy. The Walk a Mile in Her Shoes event is happening at the end of this month, and somehow I have agreed to participate – AGAIN!

Walk A Mile in Her Shoes is an international event in which men embrace the opportunity to raise awareness about the serious causes and effects of sexualized violence. I will be joining over 600 other Sacramento, CA business leaders, elected officials, students and more to run, walk, and/or limp a full mile in high heels shoes. All funds raised for the event go towards ensuring 24 hour services are available for victims of sexual assault and domestic violence in the Sacramento, CA area.

It will be a great experience. I am sure that (unfortunately) lots of pictures will be taken … which (also unfortunately) we’ll share with you when all is said and done.

So here is the deal. We are putting together a charity boot camp at the FVT Studio to raise $$ for the cause. You get a great workout, and in the process, with your donation, you support my walk.

This 45 minute circuit-style body weight, kettlebell, TRX, and resistance band boot camp workout is a great opportunity to:

  • Get an extra fat-burning, metabolism-boosting workout
  • Bring a friend or family member to check out what we do
  • Try out our program if you’ve been meaning to do so
  • Support Forest in the Walk-A-Mile event

=> Click here to get more details and reserve your spot

 

See you on Saturday the 19th!

– Forest Vance, owner, FVT Boot Camp and Personal Training

FVT 30 Day Rapid Fat Loss Challenge – Recap + Tips for Success

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AWESOME job to our Rapid Fat Loss Challengers – and congrats on your success!!

Today I have for you the final results … plus lessons we can learn from the most successful FVT Rapid Fat Loss Challenge yet.

As a group – among the 25 folks who finished the challenge – you lost a total of 181 pounds. That’s an AVERAGE of 7.24 pounds per person. Pretty darn impressive!

Our winner of the challenge with 7% of her starting body weight lost was Kellie M. 2nd place with over 6% of his starting body weight lost goes to Ruben M. 3rd place went to Andreas B, with over 5% of starting body weight lost. And honorable mention as well to Erik Z, who also lost over 5% of his starting body weight.

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EVERYONE who finished, went down in weight. Again, really impressive, and our most successful challenge yet!!

So, there are a LOT of things we can learn from the challengers and their success. Here are three great ones to start:

FVT 30 Day Rapid Fat Loss Challenge – Recap + Tips for Success

1 – ANYONE can do it

Too often we hear folks say – “oh, I’m sure it CAN be done … but don’t think I can actually do it MYSELF”

They BELIEVE it can be done … they just don’t think that THEY can do it.

Here’s the deal. Men and women both competed in this challenge. People new to exercise competed in this challenge. Folks who have been training at our studio for years competed in this challenge. Folks in their 20’s competed in this challenge. Folks in their 70’s competed in this challenge. ALL lost weight and made improvements and finished slimmer, stronger, and BETTER than when they started.

DOING is always better than sitting on the sidelines and wondering what might have happened if you tried.

Barring a medical condition or some other reason that you specifically know you cannot lose weight – you CAN. And believing you can is truly the first step.

2 – It does NOT take extreme deprivation, 2+ hours per day of exercise, etc.

The strategy we recommended for our challengers – from a diet and workout perspective – was not extreme. (If you would like a more specific idea of what we did, check out the FVT 7 Day Rapid Fat Loss Blueprint report/package – free – HERE.)

In fact, I am fairly certain most folks went off the “diet”plan multiple times during the challenge. I am thinking average workout frequency was probaby three to five times per week. And STILL we AVERAGED 7.26 pounds lost in one month.

Take a reasonable, healthy approach to your workouts and diet – and you will make steady progress towards your fat loss goals. That’s the best way to do it in the long run, and that’s really all it takes.

3 – Shred your excuse list and get it DONE

At the end of the day, you just have to make it happen. If you want to change, if you want to lose weight and be more healthy and have less stress and just look great in a swimsuit – commit to a goal, and get it done.

Have a plan to eat right, and stick to it. Have a plan for your workouts, and do them consistently. And you WILL make progress.

It’s very simple at the end of the day. Don’t over-complicate success. Just show up, and get it done.

Well, that’s it for now. Hope these tips and take-aways from the rapid fat loss challenge have helped you. Train hard, have a great day, and talk soon –

Forest Vance
ForestVanceTraining.com

PS – If you’re interested in training at the FVT Studio – we’ll be doing another challenge in the fall (or possibly sooner) – but our regular boot camp and personal training programs are on-going, and we’d love to have you. Shoot us a message HERE to schedule your free Test-A-Trainer session today!!

Potatoes, eggs, and coffee beans

coffee

Today we’re going to shift gears a bit. Got a story to share with you.

Whether you’re:

— having a hard time sticking to your nutrition plan
— inconsistent with your workouts for whatever reason
— coming back from an injury and just can’t quite get your training going
— etc.

It will make you think, reflect, and become a better and stronger version of yourself.

###

Potatoes, eggs, and coffee beans

Once upon a time, a daughter complained to her father that her life was miserable and that she didn’t know how she was going to make it. She was tired of fighting and struggling all the time. It seemed just as one problem was solved, another one soon followed.

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Once the three pots began to boil, he placed potatoes in one pot, eggs in the second pot, and ground coffee beans in the third pot.

He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter. The daughter, moaned and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing.

After twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He took the potatoes out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.

He then ladled the coffee out and placed it in a cup. Turning to her he asked. “Daughter, what do you see?”

“Potatoes, eggs, and coffee,” she hastily replied.

“Look closer,” he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Its rich aroma brought a smile to her face.

“Father, what does this mean?” she asked.

He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and coffee beans had each faced the same adversity– the boiling water.

However, each one reacted differently.

The potato went in strong, hard, and unrelenting, but in boiling water, it became soft and weak.

The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid interior until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard.

However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new.

“Which are you,” he asked his daughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a potato, an egg, or a coffee bean?”

###

Things will happen TO you in life. You will be faced with DAILY challenges trying to eat healthy and stay consistent with your workouts. You WILL have MULTIPLE failures along the way. But that’s okay.

At the end of the day, what matters is what happens WITHIN you. How you adapt and change and become a better version of yourself.

Commit to learning from your mistakes and getting BETTER. EMBRACE adversity. And you will be unstoppable!!

Train hard, rock on, and talk soon –

Forest

 

PS – Another thing that is a HUGE part of being successful in any area of life – people you surround yourself with. Your support system. They say you are the sum of the five people you spend the most time with, after all.

This is a big part of what makes the community at FVT so powerful. Having like-minded folks around you that are working towards a common goal.

If you are a new/prospective client, click HERE to contact us and schedule your free intro session.

If you are already a client and are looking to take your NUTRITION to the next level, click HERE for more info on our nutrition coaching group.

Why you’re NOT getting results from your workouts (and what to do about it)

You’ve been working out – hard – two, three, four or more days per week. You feel like you’re getting stronger, you have more energy, and your overall fitness level is without a doubt improving.

BUT, you’re just not getting the fat loss results you know you could be.

I mean, you’re TRYING to watch what you eat. You know it’s better than it was when you started your workout program. So it’s really strange that you’re not losing at least one or two pounds per week.

Alright. Here’s the deal. I’m a nice guy, but at the end of the day, I gotta be real with you – because my job is to get you results.

It’s your nutrition.

You could very well FEEL like you’re eating pretty good – or at least making an effort to – but actually, you are probably making a few simple (but NOT necessarily obvious) mistakes that are keeping you from losing fat like you should be.

It could be eating sweets and snacks during the day. It could be drinking a beer or glass of wine (or two) each night. It could be going way overboard on the weekends with eating out.

Point is, you THINK you are eating good most of the time … but it’s simply not enough to get you where you want to be. You need a plan, some guidance, and accountability in your nutrition planning to help you reach your goals.

Enter the FVT Nutrition Coaching group.

This group will provide you with the specific plan, the accountability, the support, and what one of our members recently called “positive peer pressure” you need to make some serious in the coming days, weeks, and months.

Members of the group get:

— Bi-weekly in-person meeetings – we weigh in, I personally do a 15-20 minute talk on a nutrition-related topic, and then we do our “hot seat” portion of the coaching – we go around the room and talk about any specific challenges YOU are having that are keeping you from reaching your ultimate goals. And we break it down as a group and try to help you solve it!
— Private Facebook group – so that all members of the group can interact w one another between meetings, share recipes, etc.
— Weekly food log report reviews – I personally review your food log report each week to make sure you are staying on track.
— And more.

Now there IS an application process. Truly, we do not want to accept anyone and everyone in this group. That’s why I have NOT set up an online payment option.

The cost is very reasonable actually (currently $39 per month, going up to $49 very shortly) – so that’s not the reason we’ve decided to do it this way – the key is that anyone who wants into the group must be ready to get very serious, stop making excuses, and make some amazing changes.

It’s not for everyone. But it is a GREAT solution for the right people. Members of the group are already experiencing some amazing results – which I’ll share with you in a separate message, in a couple of days.

But for now. If you are interested, click HERE, fill out the contact form and let me know want in the Nutrition Coaching Group. Tell me why you think you’d be a good fit for the group. And I’ll get back with you ASAP!

Looking forward to hearing back from you soon, and have a great Friday –

Forest Vance
Owner, FVT Boot Camp and Personal Training
ForestVanceTraining.com

PS – We have space for only four folks in the current group – so if you’re interested, please fill out an application as soon as you can! Thanks 🙂