What if I don't have an ocean to practice in?

Came across this on accident today:

Fencing Workout DVD

I have to admit that I'm curious, but the dates on the website are from January and it indicates no official release date that I can see. Also, the listed exercises don't look much different than what we do at practice for warm-up most nights.

I do find it a little humorous that they haven't removed some of the default template content (the "lorem ipsum") stuff.

Debasing fencing masks...and toilet seats

This is a real life Fight Club (pre-dating the movie) in Silicon Valley. A lot of the protective head gear they're wearing is fencing masks, which rather offends me. While I've always secretly wanted to know how I would fare in a fist fight, these guys seem more than a little ridiculous. To me, this video just reinforces the dignified, but dynamic and strenuous aspects of fencing. Fencing is in itself a fight club - albeit one with strict rules and plenty of protection. As our coach said to us only Wednesday night: You always want your opponent to leave the strip feeling like he's been in a dogfight.



Oh yeah, and how can something be "semi-lethal"??

NYT: Weight Training

Does Weight Lifting Make a Better Athlete

"There is no doubt that an appropriate weight-training program would improve efficiency in pretty much any athlete"

Now what did I do with that spare time? Had it around here somewhere...

Resistance Training

There's always a lot of talk in the fencing.net forums about weight training, so I thought I would share part of my home training regimen. To add strength and quickness to my retreats, I often practice with resistance. With my right hand, I hold a rope to which I have attached a 72 pound weight as I retreat. See below for an illustrative picture of how I set this up:

Ve vant to pump! you up!

So I bought a smallish weight machine this weekend off craigslist. It doesn't do everything, but allows me to do a full circuit of the muscle groups. Last night was the first time I really used it and I concentrated on lower body

3 x 10 squats
3 x 20 toe raises (calves)
3 x 10 leg curl
2 x crunches to failure

I kept the weights very light last night because I haven't lifted weights in a couple years since I gave up my Bally's membership. The next step is to crack open the copy of Strength Training for Fencers and sketch out an actual routine. In college, I lifted weights quite a bit, with guidance in the beginning from the cross-country coaches, so that's what I base most of my planning on. My experience is in training different muscle groups on alternating days so that your muscles get the proper rest; upper body one day, lower body the next, repeat. But since I won't have time to train on nights that I fence, it may be a bit of a juggling act at first to make
sure I am working hard enough. It only took me about 19 minutes last night to finish my circuit, so there's plenty of time to adjust without eating up too much of my evenings.

Meanwhile, I need to add some intense all over cardiovascular training on the weekends. I'm toying with a bootcamp workout I read on another blog.

I might add, it's always like this at the beginning of the season. Big plans for reshaping my physique, my fitness. How long do I usually stick with it? Hard to say - two steps forward, one and a half steps back. I've come to grips with the fact that I'll never be as fit as I was in college again, but every little bit feels like a lot of good to me.

Boy, was I in a bad mood last time. I know I'm not supposed to self-censor, but I did anyway, because it was such an immature post.

Frustration has become the name of the game since the last tournament, but tonight it is a frustration tempered by a bit of calmness and an attempt to work through my issues.

Lessons recently have been difficult. My stumbling block is long exchanges so that is what I have been practicing. I feel like it gets no easier.

A couple weeks ago I went skiing in Vermont. I'm not a very good skier either, and it had been a couple years since I had been (conditions last year in Washington were abysmal). However, by the end of two days of skiing, I was nearing that lofty plateau of confidence. There were two things I learned about skiing during this period.

1. Perseverance solves problems: That is, if you feel yourself beginning to fall, you can push your body extra hard and actually remain on your feet.
2. Falling in fresh powder doesn't hurt. It's even a little fun with the right mind set.
   

I spent many a long lift ride pondering how these lessons might apply to my fencing. Let me tell you, I didn't get far. There is one guy at my Salle whom I fight over and over, several times a week, and I cannot beat him. I cannot even get more than a couple touches on him before the bout is over. So perseverance....out the window.

And even though I don't fall too much on the piste, I do find myself losing control of a bout and it seems like the same thing. But it does hurt in fencing. It is easy to pinpoint my failings. And when you fail - and you know why you fail - and you can't fix it so you keep on failing....Well, that does hurt.

Does it mean I am giving up? Hardly, but I must find other reasons currently to remain upbeat. Comraderie? Good ol' fashioned exercise? Looking good in tight pants?

Whatever works I guess...

Yorktown, 23693

So here I am in Virginia. I've been trying to wait to write till I had resumed fencing, but I imagine that's going to be at least another month. Which is disappointing to me; I honestly miss it. I kept my gear out of storage, but I haven't actually done any practicing yet besides a few half-hearted advances and retreats. It's not the same without a club. It's not the same without the people that got me interested in the sport in the first place. I know that there will be another club and I'm sure there will be other people, but until then I am awash in a sea of latency.

I kept tabs on the goings-on of the Nationals in Sacramento. I looked for names that I knew and I offered my silent little cheers. It is true what they say about the small community of fencing. I think perhaps, if I can resume regular training...if I am as good as I think I can potentially be...I will see some friends again, down the line. I wait expectantly for the announcement of the location for next year's competition.

Luckily, I have been able to keep myself from being totally dormant. I jog a little, take the dog for late night walks, play a little driveway hoops, and some softball. Today in fact was the final tournament for the softball team that adopted me so late in the season (lucky my dad is the coach). And yes, we won the tournament. But I played one game last night and three games this afternoon and let me say this to you: Sweet lord almighty, I am sore. I am sore and I am sunburned and I just want to go to bed. I was also very dirty until I hit the showers. The breeze was nice to cut through the typical Virginia heat, but it meant that I had that softball field clay dust all over me.

Regardless, there's something satisfying about calling an end to a day which allowed you to sweat out all your aggressions. A line drive into left field alleviates, at least for the trip around the bases, the stressors that weigh upon your mind. The snap of leather when you make a good catch takes your breath away just for a second; but it is a second of elation and self-satisfaction when otherwise you are full of doubt. There are similar moments in fencing, and maybe that's why I am missing it right now - during a time while stressors and self-doubt are abundant.

So I will go to bed tonight - weary, but in a good way. Naturally in the morning I will be sore as hell, but ... I'll worry about that tomorrow.