Last weekend we hosted 25 of our founding online members at 98 Gym for the inaugural 98 Training Camp. The idea of the camp was to get people who interact regularly on our online community page to meet each other face to face and experience a couple of days training at 98 alongside our ‘in gym’ members, ambassadors and staff. We hoped that everyone would leave with a better understanding of the gym, the program , ethos and the standards expected. We were unsure of how much we could squeeze into the two days without people starting to break down. We were impressed with the efforts and toughness of the group. The group got through all the sessions planned and more. Below is an overview of our first 98 Online Members Training Camp;
SATURDAY
0900 – 1030 Session 1 – STR LOWER BODY
Warm Up
Then
Worked to a 1 RM Deadlift
Then
5 rounds
5 GTS AT 60% Bodyweight
15 Cadence Push Ups
20 Banded Pull Aparts
It was good to see a few members hit PR’s in this session. The group got the chance to work with heavier deadballs than they may have access to at home. The coaches spent time working on technique, hopefully giving all some pointers to take away and think about when they get back to training in their own gyms.
1145 – 1230 Session 2 – ESD
Warm Up
Then
Choose Bike Erg, Ski Erg, Assault Bike or Rower
8 Rounds
20 second max effort sprints
120 seconds rest
*Complete at 9 RPE
I think this session was an eye opener for a few. This is a perfect example of something that looks pretty easy on paper but in fact is the total opposite. The online members trained hard together surrounded by likeminded individuals and had the 98 staff in their ears pushing some to go a lot harder than they would normally go. It took people out of their comfort zone. I hope this feeling will be remembered every time they get on the Erg for an ESD in the future.
1430 – 1545 Q & A
This saw Kev Toonen (Head Of Programming), Harriet Walker (98 Nutritionist), Sam Burgess (Pro International Rugby League Player) and Chris Feather (Owner/Founder of 98 Gym) take the panel for a 90 minute question and answer. There were some really great questions asked and equally some great answers given. We talked over Leadership, Nutrition for Performance, The 98 Program, Being a professional sports person, resilience, the 98 ethos and much more. This has been recorded as a podcast and will be released in the next couple of weeks. Watch this space.
1600-1645 Session 3 – FYF Team Workout
Teams of 4
10,000m Ski Erg Relay
*1 player must be in rack hold at all time. The ski cannot move unless the Kettlebells are in the front rack position (2 x 24kg Male, 2 x 16kg Female)
*The rack hold player must be directly after the ski effort. Looks like P1 Ski, P2 Hold, P3 Rest, P4 Rest.
This workout separates the men from the boys, it shows us who is a team player, who will suffer for the good of the team. The harder you ski the more painful the rack hold is but the faster your team will complete the distance and therefor the less your other members have to endure their rack hold. There is no hiding in this workout. I think this was the perfect way to round off the days work. The atmosphere in the room was immense, people sacrificed their comfort for others, exactly what we wanted to see. On a side note any of our online members are welcome to join us at 98 for FYF on Saturdays, 6am, 7am or 8am, just shoot me an e mail.
1700-1930 – Recovery Session At Cultivate Recovery Centre
These guys have been partners of ours for nearly a year now. They have a great set up and knowledge of all things recovery. They put on a full recovery session for us including Infrared Saunas, Ice Bath Therapy, Normatec, Spot Cryo Therapy and of course a few Young Henrys Lagers and pizza. There were plenty of tired bodies getting around, I wouldn’t imagine people had much trouble sleeping apart from dealing with the anxiety of what was about to hit them the next day.
SUNDAY
06:00 – 07:30 – Beach Session – Kev Toonen
‘It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.’
At 0600 we left the gym for Clovelly Beach, it was still dark and arriving at the beach it was windy, cold with heavy swell… perfect setting for what we wanted. The beach session was simple, how do you perform outside of your normal environment and how do you act when you fail. I wanted to draw on teamwork and I wanted the individual to focus on finding a way to win in a situation that was built on failure. The session it self was not important, meaning the exercises we did, what was important, what we focused on was working for the team, making sure you did everything YOU could to ensure success. And when it failed, you rallied around your mates and attacked the problem again, and again until you achieved the goal. Shared suffering brings out a very unique team dynamic, you bond together knowing everyone around you is feeling the same, some moments you need help and in others you have the ability to help others. What we saw in this session was exactly that, a group of individuals coming together as a team to share the burden towards a common goal. Team not self. Thats the whole idea behind what we do here at 98, you train hard so that you, when needed or called upon can support and carry your share of the load for the team, family or friends.
All in all it was a very successful weekend and the first of many. Thanks to all who came along and helped make it what it was. There will be pictures, videos, tutorials and the podcast to follow.
