It's that time of the year again when most families go out of town for various reasons—health, vacation and meditation.
For health enthusiasts and true-blue athletes, this is the best time to try different health and training platforms.
In a recent trip to Balesin in Polilio Island in Quezon, this Locker Room beater got a taste of what an alternative training should be.
Joining the Balesin Fitness Camp, through the kindness of One of a Kind Marketing’s husband-and-wife tandem Allan and Christine Majadillas, was a refreshing treat and an eye-opener for me.
That it’s not too late to get fit even if I’m going 50 and there are a lot of fun ways to train and enjoy getting fit. Enough of the conventional.
Run if you can
I thought there was really a scientific way to run. Well, yes and no. On our first day in the island, Elite triathlon coaches Dan Brown and Ani De Leon-Brown gave us drills to highlight proper breathing, correct posture and stride.
This is the same drill done by our national athletes in running and triathlons.
But what intrigued me, and enlightened me at the same time, was that Filipinos—for their short sizes—should run flat on their feet.
Runners from Africa and the America, for their long limbs, should be more bouncy on their feet.
One of the most effective flat runners is Boston Marathon champion Yuki Kawauchi of Japan. (Kawauchi was set to defend his title.)
Kawauchi’s proper style has thrusted him to victory in 2018 against the best from Kenya, like five-time titlist Wesley Korir and Geofrey Kirui, the world champion and 2017 Boston King, respectively.
Coaches Dan and Ani stressed that Asians, or Filipinos for that matter, should run the way Yuki does, if we want to be world-class.
That’s why Mary Joy Tabal is in good hands when she decided to train for her marathon event in the SEA Games and for her ultimate goal of a second Olympic appearance in 2020 Tokyo.
Yoga as a form of recovery
This is rarely practiced by national athletes.
After a tiring, training day, a short Yoga session is beneficial for recovery of an athlete’s mind and body.
This was what we experienced from TriFactor Ambassador Elle Ada, who recently placed 2nd in the TriFactor Asian series in Vietnam.
The Fil-American triathlete led a sunset Yoga at Balesin Spa’s pool area. She said it helps one’s mind to relax and stay focused on his/her goals. It gives an athlete better sleep for his muscle cells to recover. I did get a Nirvana of a sleep on that night.
Pound per pound
Hand and eye coordination is very important for an athlete. Every punch in combat, every forehand attack in tennis, every hit using a baseball bat is a combination of numbers perfected after long, repeated drills.
Fitness advocate Marge Camacho engaged our group in what was called Pound Fitness Rockout Workout.
Using a pair of hard plastic drum sticks that we constantly pounded on the floor, we had to follow musical choreography, beginning with a slow beat that got faster and faster until some lost their rhythm.
This exercise separates the weak pretenders from the one gifted with natural athleticism. Marge said constant practice with Pound Workout will develop one’s rhythm.
Learn more about alternative training system with MMA star Mark Striegl and beach volleybelle Bea Tan here on Locker Room. #MSSportsLockerRoom
