Ok I’m sorry, but I have a graph.
But stick with it, it’s a good one.
It explains why we do things at Bua like snatch and kipping gymnastics, and why life gets much harder when we don’t.
Here’s the graph, but let me talk you through it.
Let’s start with the two curved lines running from left to right across the middle of the graph. They represent two individuals with different exercise habits. You can see that later in life, one is above the threshold lines and one is below.
You could see these two threshold lines as “quality of life when older” thresholds. Above the top line is independence, health and opportunity for adventure. Below the bottom line is sickness, dependence, and general misery.
Ok, straightforward enough so far.
But now let’s notice the 2 main differences between the two lines
- The height of their peak
- The maintenance of their peak
Now this graph refers to two people, one who exercises (with strength training included) in adulthood, and the other who doesn’t.
What I would argue is that there should be a third line.
This line would represent people who train like we do. People who not only stay strong and healthy, but who build power and athleticism on a whole other level.
Let’s face it, training would be much more straightforward if we stuck to goblet squats, planks and running. Going through the process of learning how to clean & jerk, or doing progressions towards a muscle up is not so straightforward, but the power output associated with such movements leads to a much higher peak of athleticism that is not represented on this graph.
The point is, our peak is higher.
I would also argue that our peak is typically later. We regularly see people PR in their 40’s and 50’s, doing things they were not capable of in their theoretical peak of their 20’s.
So if our peak is higher, and happens later, and we continue with the training methods through our later life, you can imagine where our line ends up as reaches the right hand side.
Aging well is not the only reason for training as we do, but it’s one of the bigger ones. Its an argument for our continued commitment to high power output, high complexity movements that will mean life will only become more of an adventure as we get older.
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