Krav Maga - Find Your Inner Fighter

An attacker slams you hard to the rough asphalt and presses a knife up to your throat. Do you know what to do? If you practice krav maga, then you are prepared to defend yourself in such a scenario.

This latest fitness trend isn’t really about fitness at all, even though you can certainly improve your fitness through regular krav maga training. Krav maga was developed, and is currently practiced, as a method of self-defense under unpredictable and dangerous conditions. Its founder, Imi Lichtenfeld, faced with aggressors in World World II-era Eastern Europe, combined elements of wrestling, boxing, and gymnastics to overcome and defeat assailants. Later, he brought this method of self-defense to the fledging Israel, where the army was trained in krav maga for hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. More martial arts techniques and movements were incorporated, and krav maga proved to be extremely effective for fighters in real-life situations.

As krav maga grows in popularity, most participants flock to classes seeking fitness benefits. In the Level I class that I took at Ohio Krav Maga & Fitness, we got our hearts pumping and blood rushing by jogging around the gym. After a few stretches, the fighting began right away, with punches delivered to our partner’s focus mitts. My no-nonsense partner forcibly pushed me away if I edged in too closely. I could feel my heart rate rising with this high intensity work.

Unlike other forms of martial arts, krav maga is not a sport. There are no matches, and the focus is not on form or alignment -- it’s about getting the job done. As a result, functionality is premium; all moves are meant to translate into real-life situations to effectively defeat your attacker.

In our class, instructor John Lovins led us through several groundwork maneuvers designed to free ourselves from being pinned down by an assailant. We first perfected the best way to fall and get back up while still protecting and defending ourselves. We then moved to partner-work with another person straddling and choking the other. These positions can be uncomfortable for someone with personal space issues (like me!), but as another instructor, Terri Rosen, pointed out, “this is a safe place to deal with that uncomfortable feeling” rather than in a truly dangerous situation with a stranger digging his fingers into your windpipe.

Grappling with my partner as I learned points of weakness, throwing elbows and dodging kicks, I felt empowered and strong. I also felt tired, as our entire body was employed to defend ourselves. In krav maga, there are no rules, no time-outs, no off-limits. This system is based on the real world, and in the real world, you do whatever you can to stay alive. Krav maga gives you the tools to take advantage of your own power. In the process, you gain strength, burn a few calories, and become more confident.

For power, we finished off with drills, moving quickly through hard and fast punches on the striking pads. While we were slugging it out on the shield, our partner would simulate a knife attack, which we then fought off using the skills we had practiced earlier. The adrenaline is rushing, your shirt is dripping with sweat, and instructor Sue Burton sums up your thoughts, “Holy crap! What just happened?!” What happened? I'm a fighter now.Follow @catherinederrow

Power Yoga

Today I tried out a much-hyped studio that offers power yoga. Power yoga is a hybrid form of vinyasa yoga that grows out of the Ashtanga tradition, cultivating the physical benefits of yoga.

Typically, one of the primary purposes for doing yoga is the focusing of the mind. Beryl Bender Birch, one of the first proponents of power yoga says, "the idea behind the physical practice of yoga is to encourage a deeper mind-body awareness ... [improving the] physical body helps bring clarity and focus to the mind as well."

However, at this studio, top 40 pop and R&B music blared from the speakers while we practiced, preventing any clearing of the mind. While the music was fun to listen to, it distracted the focus from the breath and perhaps inhibited body awareness, as our minds were on the music rather than our actions on the mat.

One of the main differentiations of this type of yoga from traditional yoga was the pace. The teacher led us through the sequences at a tempo significantly quicker than even Ashtanga yoga, a very athletic form of yoga. Although the instructor cued the breath, if a practitioner were breathing at that rate, she would likely hyperventilate. As a result, movements were not linked to an inhale or exhale, which usually typifies most vinyasa practices.

Another disadvantage to this faster rate of movement is the sacrifice in alignment. Most practitioners (this was a mixed-level class) cannot achieve proper alignment when their bodies are changing shape at such a rapid pace. Safety is a huge concern. Unfortunately, in this class, the teacher practiced along with the students, with her back to the class. She was not monitoring the students for good form, or even able to make verbal corrections as she could not see the students.

Moving at such a quick pace made for a good aerobic workout, however. Our heart rates increased, and we were definitely burning calories. Yoga is still a low-impact activity with a moderate intensity, so the calories burned are going to be less than a high impact activity like running for the same period of time.

Power yoga does have some strength building components to it as well, leveraging our body weight to perform planks, push-ups and balance work. These exercises will certainly make a difference in your body over time, especially compared with a sedentary individual, but the strength gains are going to be less than doing a traditional strength training program with resistance.

Lastly, the room was heated to approximately 90-95 degrees, increasing the flexibility of the muscles. Warm muscles are more relaxed and have increased range of motion. However, it is unclear to me to whether significant gains in flexibility can be sustained after the class since the poses were not held for any length of time.

For me, power yoga was enjoyable as an aerobic workout, an alternative to using the elliptical or going for a run on a "rest" day. I really don't consider it true yoga, since to me, one of the primary goals of yoga is relaxation and focusing on the breath, which was completely absent from this practice. Still, power yoga is a fun way to burn calories and maintain muscle tone.Follow @catherinederrow

Body Fat Percentage

Most people who are overweight know that they need to lose weight, but the question is: how much? When you are beginning a training program, it is helpful to go through a series of fitness assessments, including body composition. Learning your body fat percentage will give you helpful information about the direction that your fitness program should take.

There are several methods of determining body fat percentage, including hydrostatic weighing (underwater), skinfold caliper testing, handheld devices, DXA scan, and BodPod. Most of these methods have some disadvantages, and varying levels of user error or inaccuracy.

One of the most accurate methods of measuring body fat composition is through the BodPod machine, pictured here. This machine is a highly accurate measure, performing an analysis of the body through air displacement. The test is non-invasive and relatively inexpensive, but it may be difficult to find a machine nearby. I completed my test at Baseline Fitness, a personal training studio in Worthington, OH.

For the test, you need to put on a bathing suit and swim cap, and you sit very still inside the egg-shaped pod. I thought I might be somewhat claustrophobic, but the test is only 50 seconds. For accuracy, the test is repeated at least once, potentially twice. When the test is complete and you have dressed, the administrator will explain the analysis, which includes body density, fat weight, fat-free weight, total weight, and body fat percentage.


This information is analyzed according to a chart like the one seen here, and recommendations are made based on your results and your current lifestyle habits.Follow @catherinederrow