Weekend Crush: Ronda Rousey

Last night was one of those nights. I am the odd one out on betting days--in my family we bet imaginary money on boxing and MMA matches and yell at the screen--but last night was a little different. I actually got into the action because I wanted to see if pretty Ronda Rousey could kick butt. And I hoped for it.

I know nothing, absolutely nothing, about mixed martial arts but I love to see women follow their dreams, even if it means going outside traditional gender roles. You know those little face shots they show with the competitor stats? I loved seeing a lovely shot of Ronda Rousey vs. the aptly nicknamed "Girlrilla" Meisa Tate. Okay, so I was immediately biased against Tate for being... alardosa... One of those people that just has to call attention to herself and "act big."

Tate did, for her credit, start out well. But just look at how it ended.... my arm hurts just looking at that! I don't care how flexible your shoulders are, there is no surviving this kind of arm ripping fury. I'll let you guess who won this match.

Weekend Crush: Kenneth Kao, DC

He teaches Kung Fu, practices chiropractic medicine, and oh yeah, there's that bit where he jumped from one pole to another at this year's Pole Expo. If you are a pole dancer you have definitely heard the litany: Do NOT jump into moves! This is true for those of us that are risking injury by compensating a lack of strength with momentum--in his case his strength gives him the control to pull off such an insane move. Don't blink, it happens around 0:45. And yes, this is one of those video I recommend clicking the gear and choosing HD!




I found this awesome video on NinaReed.com. Coolest part? He's actually one of her pole instructors! Dr. Kenneth Kao is an instructor at Vertical Fusion Boulder. I can't imagine taking instruction from him, wow! Or even better, following the recommendation on his practice's site, "Anyone is welcome to fly him out to location for specialized care or instruction, or just for fun!" I'm adding that to my list of ways to spend my money when I win the lottery. I can dream!

As if that wasn't enough Kenneth Kao is also a published writer and loves to learn about the human condition. The English nerd in me is all sorts of happy knowing this. It seems to me that pole dance tends to go with intellectual awesomenes; there must be something to that. In fact, I am certain of it and will be posting some of my findings to that effect soon! Check out links to his Dr. Kao's published works on his personal blog, The Chaos of Balance.

Weekend Crush: Jerome Fitness

I found Jerome Fitness while searching for info on PNF stretching and was hooked. His YouTube tutorials cover fitness, flexibility, nutrition--and a few laughs too. Who says who can't have a little fun getting flexier and stronger?

Awesome splits, right?
(c) Jerome Fitness, used with permission

One of my favorite things are the middle splits pointers. First of all, how awesome are his side splits? This has to be a martial arts thing--I've noticed that they tend to have better side splits than front splits, must be the kicking. I think I need to cross-train in this, I could learn to love the ability to kick people in the head. But I digress, lol. Maybe it's me but most of the videos I find are of the "ohhh lookit me!" variety; Jerome's Flexibility Training channel goes over practical tips like hip positioning, warming up, and avoiding injury. I love that he's just a regular person who loves fitness. Well, a regular person with incredible flexibility and strength too!

A fun fact about Jerome: he is actually an ectomorph. If I just lost you, some people gain muscle and weight

Weekend Crush: Grace Bruce

From being a flexibility guru on YouTube to playing a Snatcher in Harry Potter Deathly Hallows, Grace Bruce is a whole lot of awesome in one person. You know those moves where you kick past your head? Yeah, she can do that. Her strength and flexibility are incredible and serve her well in her varied pursuits, notably dance and martial arts.

Grace (right) and Chloe (left)
(c) Bruce Sistaz, Used with Permission

Even better, Grace and her sister Chloe help those of us aspiring to their levels of flexy. They have a series, Flexy Fridays, featuring tutorials on flexibility enhancing stretches. What I love is that they include really great warmups plus give valuable pointers along the way. It's not just a show-and-tell of their staggering flexibility, which by itself would still be awe inspiring. If you're not near their flexibility level you (like me) you can still benefit from their tutorials since they do suggest tips for beginners. One stretch I added to my routine is from their Stretches for Box Splits. I hate stretching box/middle splits but I just imagine Grace & Chloe's super kicks and bite the bullet :) Their teamwork makes me wish I could coerce convince my sister to do some pole fit or stretching for sure.

Of course, Grace didn't become flexible overnight. She's been involved in martial arts from a very young age.  I notice that in the Flexy Friday series not only do they include warmups but also ease into poses. It's nice to see that someone at her