January 10, 2016

This past week, news broke about a class-action lawsuit Fitbit Charge HR now faces due to inaccurate and dangerously low heart rate readouts.

The Fitbit Charge HR is the only heart rate monitor I’ve ever used. I first bought it in February of 2015 to use for DDPYoga, but also because I was curious about how many steps I was getting in a day (turns out, it’s not a lot). Back in June, I said I was underwhelmed with its performance. No matter how hard I was working, sometimes my heart rate was barely breaking 100 (and my zone is 134-154). Or, sometimes I’d be near my zone, and literally seconds later I’d be back in the 90s again.

In December, some people on the private Facebook group for DDPYoga certified instructors were asking about new heart rate monitors. DDPYoga instructor Christina Russell commented that the DDPYoga Performance Center uses the Wahoo Tickr X because it’s the most accurate they’ve tested. With some Christmas money, I bought the Tickr X.

I wanted to see how the Fitbit did compared to the Tickr X, so I put them both on at the same time. It only took me a few workouts to see that the Tickr X killed the Fitbit in direct competition.

Obviously, this isn’t a scientific comparison. But, with each workout, my heart rate was about 10 bpm higher on the Tickr X compared to the Charge HR. That number may not seem like much, but look at the difference in calories burned.

Also, my right shoulder was sore during these workouts, so I wasn’t necessarily looking to get into my target zone and stay there. Instead, I was just looking to stretch out a bit. So keep that in mind.

DDPYoga – New Year’s Eve

On New Year’s Eve, I did a lower body workout so I wouldn’t have to use my arm as much. I don’t remember which one, but I was using the DDPYoga Now app (which is pretty cool, by the way).

Martial Arts – New Year’s Day

When I was training with my karate instructor, he told me about a tradition he’d had at one point – training your whole system on New Year’s Day. I kind of did that. I warmed up with some DDPYoga stretching before doing the old Yang-style tai chi chuan form, followed by the five Hsing-i elements and the animal forms I’ve been taught thus far. After that, I reviewed my karate forms and ippons, taezus, and kihons in 2 directions. If the should would’ve been feeling better, I would have done 8. Notice the downward trend at the end, which was me trying to remember some of those wazas since I haven’t actively practiced them in eight months.

DDPYoga – Jan. 02

This was probably Stand Up 2.0. The average bpm was closest here, though there are still widely varying numbers.

After this workout, I decided to ditch the Fitbit entirely. I know I don’t get as many steps as the “gold standard” of 10,000, and I’m tired of feeling inferior to people telling me they have three times as many steps as I do for the day. I know I think I’m sleeping 7 hours, but may really only be getting 5.5 hours of sleep (as we compared Fitbit stats, a person I went on a date with was shocked at how restless I was). And I know, with pretty convincing supporting evidence, that my heart rate is better measured with the Wahoo Tickr X than the Fitbit Charge HR.

October 23, 2015

Martial arts can seem like an illusion.

Take, for instance, the competition I saw at the U.S. Open in 2007 in Orlando. A martial artist, a black belt I presumed to be in his 40s, lifted up a plank full of nails and punctured a bottle of water with it. As the water spread out on the floor, he put the plank down and stepped on it. I cringed as I watched the nails all but pierce his feet while he demolished a stack of bricks as tall as a child.

Neither act – standing on nails or breaking bricks – is as strenuous as it seems, says Dr. Jason Thalken, author of his first book, Fight Like A Physicist.

Regarding the bed of nails, he says that “any person is capable of performing this trick right now with no training.” He explains how surface area distribution prevents the nails from piercing the skin. Turning to the bricks, he says it wouldn’t work if the bricks were spaced incorrectly. He details how bricks are broken due to how they are bent.

This is just one example of how Thalken breaks through martial arts mysticism.

The meat of the book, in my view, lies in the middle. Thalken discusses the issue of how brain damage occurs from sparring and MMA fights, and even suggests that, in some cases, the more protection we think we have from head injuries (through the use of face cages, for example), the more we may actually be at risk for them.

Just because Thalken is a new author doesn’t mean he lacks knowledge. The Ph.D., holder of three bachelor’s degrees, and holder of eight patents has filed a patent for a new type of headgear to protect against brain injuries in the hopes of preventing chronic traumatic encephelopathy (CTE), also known as “punch drunk syndrome,” in martial artists and fighters. CTE is caused by repeated blows to the head, and autopsies of athletes in boxing, football, and pro wrestling have revealed evidence of CTE.

The only other book I’m aware of that discusses science at this much depth in a martial arts book comes from The Secrets of Judo, but that book doesn’t address head injuries because that’s not the purpose of judo. Activities like boxing, sparring, and MMA all include the head as a target, and even a prime target.

Despite his expertise, Thalken says “you don’t need to be an expert if you can fight like a physicist.”

Check out these videos from Thalken himself to learn more about the concepts detailed in his book.

October 16, 2015

I hear you loud and clear, Metamora. You want evening yoga? You’re gonna get it.

Through a partnership with Metamora Parks & Recreation, I’m happy to be bringing DDPYoga to central Illinois for the first time ever.

What’s DDPYoga?

Well, first of all… It ain’t your mama’s yoga!

DDPYoga is a fitness system that combines elements of yoga, traditional fitness, sports therapy, and dynamic resistance to create a kickass workout.

With it, you can:

1. Burn fat standing still!
2. Increase your cardio without running, jumping, or lifting!
3. Get more flexible!

The best part is you can do all of this with minimal joint impact.

What I like most about the DDPYoga workout is that you can make it as easy or as challenging as you want. People of literally all ages and fitness levels can do DDPYoga.

See some more inspirational transformation videos with this playlist:

What Are Some More Details About DDPYoga In Metamora?

Classes will be held Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. in the Metamora Park District activity room starting January 5.

The first session will last 13 weeks, with the last class finishing on March 31.

A minimum of 8 people must sign up for the session, but we’ll have to limit it to about 15 people because of the space.

How Do I Get Started?

I am still waiting to hear how people can actually sign up for the class.

In the meantime, put your name and email on this form, and when I know more, I’ll email you and let you know, too.

September 5, 2015

This past week, I made final arrangements in preparation for INBOUND. I am now in the final tweaking stages of a presentation I’m giving in the middle of the month, I’ve met with each of my coworkers about the status of what we’re working on, and I even had a new batch of business cards printed.

Then, my mom texted me the news: My cousin’s husband, Steve, who’d battled cancer for the past two years, had died.

When I found out his funeral service would conflict with INBOUND, I didn’t have much time to make a choice: either I attend the service in Chicago, or I miss it to attend INBOUND. It became obvious that I couldn’t miss the opportunity to be with my family and celebrate someone who brought so much joy to so many people (he was a comedian, after all). Ultimately, I’ve decided to skip INBOUND – and my VIP pass to meet Chelsea Clinton – to be with my family.

(You can read more about Steve’s story here, as told by his wife and my cousin, Andrea. Believe it or not, Steve’s diagnosis came about only after their daughter, Lila Blue, was born nearly 3 months premature. Lila spent more than 500 days in the ICU and was able to come home earlier this year.)

Even though I missed the event, I still wanted to be engaged with it. That’s why I am taking a page from David Kelly to create the biggest list of resources I can.

This is the unofficial backchannel containing curated resources and links for INBOUND 2015, which took place in Boston from Sept. 8-11, 2015.

Over the next week or so, I’ll be adding to this list. Please let me know about any and all links related to INBOUND, and I’ll post them here – whether it’s a session you attended, spoke at, or you see something cool from somebody else. Just tweet me @adambockler with the link!

(All times Eastern)

Official INBOUND Resources

1. INBOUND Website
2. INBOUND Agenda, Session Types, Session Levels, and More
3. INBOUND Speakers
4. INBOUND Sponsors
5. INBOUND Blog
6. INBOUND Reading Prep
7. Insider’s Guide to Boston
8. INBOUND15 Mobile App

Pre-Conference Links

1. Everything You Need to Know About Inbound.org at INBOUND 2015
2. [INFOGRAPHIC] The (Very Unofficial) INBOUND Marketing Conference Guide
3. [QUIZ] Which @INBOUND Attendee Are You? (I got The Historian)

Seth Godin Keynote

1. INBOUND15 KEYNOTE SPEAKER: SETH GODIN by Sabrina Son
2. #INBOUND15: Seth Godin keynote by Andrea Brown
3. Seth Godin notes by Andrea Brown
4. Seth Godin at Inbound15 by Shayne
5. Top 4 takeaways from Seth Godin’s #INBOUND15 keynote by Kelvin Claveria
6. Key points from Seth by Cassaundra Melgar-c’de Baca
7. The INBOUND15 Keynote by Seth Godin by Suma EP
8. Seth Godin’s Best Quotes from Inbound 2015 by Ellen Coule

Brené Brown Keynote

1. Breve [sic] brown notes by Ramona Sukhraj
2. Notes from Brené Brown’s talk by Alan George
3. Why Marketers Need to Become More Vulnerable by Bill Connolly
4. [TED TALK] The Power of Vulnerability by Brené Brown
5. Brené Brown: Keynote at #INBOUND15 by Ed Fry
6. The INBOUND 2015 Keynote by Brene Brown by Nilanjana Dey

Brian Halligan & Dharmesh Shah Keynote

1. The INBOUND 2015 Keynote by Dharmesh and Brian by Nilanjana Dey
2. [VIDEO] INBOUND 2015: HubSpot Keynote by HubSpot

Aziz Ansari Keynote

1. #Inbound15 – Sketchnotes from Aziz Ansari and Eric Klinenberg’s keynote robcottingham.ca by Rob Cottingham
2. Five lessons startup founders can learn from Aziz Ansari’s dating struggles by Sara Castellanos

Chelsea Clinton Keynote

• [VIDEO] INBOUND 2015 Keynote: Chelsea Clinton by HubSpot

Daniel Pink Keynote

Dan Pink spoke Friday, Sept. 11, from approximately 9-10 a.m. Send me your recaps or live blogs so this section doesn’t look so bare!

INBOUND Meetups

Follow #INBOUND15solo if you’re the only delegate from your company attending.

1. The Big List of INBOUND 2015 Meetups, Drinks and Dinner Venues
2. Sept. 8, 3-5:30 p.m. – #INBOUND15SOLO Meetup
3. Sept. 8, 8-10 p.m. – Canadians at #Inbound15 Evening
4. Sept. 8, 7:15 p.m. – Inbound 15 Solo Craft Beer Crawl
5. Sept. 10, 5:30-6:30 p.m. – Inbound 2015 Texas HUGs Meetup (fun note: the Texas HUG rocks because they let our motley crew of solo attendees join their meetup)

INBOUND Session-Specific Links, Videos, and Live Blogs

1. #INBOUND15 Conference: FAQs About Chemistry, Client Retention and Growth by Bob Sanders
2. INBOUND15 Notes: 5 Steps to a Successful Video Strategy on YouTube by Sabrina Son
3. INBOUND15 Notes: Retention Marketing: The Next Ecommerce Battleground by Sabrina Son
4. INBOUND15 Notes: The Anatomy of Tomorrow’s Content Promotion Strategy Today by Sabrina Son
5. 5 WAYS TO GET YOUR SALES TEAM JAZZED ABOUT YOUR INBOUND MARKETING by Christina Milanowski
6. Amanda Sibley: 50 Actionable Tips and Tricks for Launching a Lead Generation Campaign at #INBOUND15 by Amanda Sibley
7. Luke Summerfield: Growth-Driven Design at #INBOUND15 by Luke Summerfield
8. Ginny Soskey: How the HubSpot Blog Used Data to Settle the Quantity vs. Quality Debate at #INBOUND15 by Ginny Soskey
9. Notes from MULTIPLE Sessions at INBOUND 2015 by Krista Wiltbank
10. Jami Oetting: How to Get the Attention of Editors Without Making Them Want to Die at #INBOUND15 by Jami Oetting
11. Jeffrey Vocell: How to Grow Your Website with HubSpot (Why You Should Put Your Website on HubSpot) at #INBOUND15 by Jeffrey Vocell
12. The Intersection of Content & Social Media Notes by Sonia Simone
13. [SLIDES] The Marketers Guide to Growth Spurts at #INBOUND15 by Kieran Flanagan
14. Rachel Happe: How a Community Approach Scales Your Impact at #Inbound15 by Rachel Happe
15. Debbie Farese: Power the Bottom of the Funnel With Sales Enablement at #INBOUND15 by Deborah Farese
16. Bill King & Tyler Richer: The Changing Face of SEO in 2015 at #INBOUND15 by Bill King
17. Will Critchlow: The Future of Search at #INBOUND15 by Will Critchlow
18. Notes From: SEVEN REASONS EVEN YOUR MOM WOULD IGNORE YOUR EMAIL by Lee Drever
19. Steve Woods: The Science of Trust: Gain Insight into the Most Crucial Measure of the Buyer Relationship at #INBOUND15 by Ed Fry
20. Karl Sakas: Scale to Win: How to Grow Your Agency Without Breaking at #INBOUND15 by Karl Sakas
21. Ellie Mirman: Creating an Agile, Data-Driven Marketing Culture at #INBOUND15 by Ellie Mirman
22. Tom Monaghan: Seven Reasons Even Your Mom Would Ignore Your Email at #INBOUND15 by Ed Fry
23. Tom Schwab: How I transformed my #eCommerce Business with HubSpot at #INBOUND15 by Tom Schwab
24. Notes from the Future of Search (Will Critchlow by Natalie DeCario
25. Notes from #INBOUND15 Session: “THE CHANGING FACE OF SEO IN 2015” by Frank Isca
26. Notes From The Future of Search: And what you should be doing about it – Will Critchlow Session by Shana Pilewski
27. The Intersection of Content & Social Media Notes by iOffice, Inc.
28. Steve Deckert’s Retention Marketing: The Next eCommerce Battleground by Diane Kulseth
29. Notes from Inbound Session – How two HubSpot Customers Transformed Their Businesses with Inbound by Alan George
30. Clodagh Higgins: How to build chemistry with your clients by Adam
31. Notes from “How does Google Drive the Culture of Innovation” by Joseph Rinaldi
32. Larry Kim’s Top 10 Social Media Advertising Hacks of All Time by Diane Kulseth
33. Session Notes: How does Google drive culture of innovation by Anadi Raj Tiwari
34. Notes from The Top 10 Social Media Advertising Hacks of All Time (Larry Kim) by Lisa Bonacci
35. Oli Gardner’s Four Corners of Conversion by Diane Kulseth
36. [PDF] Oli Gardner’s Four Corners of Conversion
37. Notes from @TraceWall ‘s Content Controls the Brand #INBOUND15 by Stephan Hovnanian
38. Notes from @dneely40 ‘s Find Your Opportunity Audience #INBOUND15 by Stephan Hovnanian
39. [Notes] Sales is a Love Affair Session Notes #INBOUND15 by Chelsea Pruett
40. #INBOUND2015: No Fail Redesigns: How to Successfully Redesign Your INbound Website for Massive Lead Conversions with Gabe Wahhab by Vin Gaeta
41. Session notes: The Neuroscience of Memorable Content Neuroscience session notes by tampyd
42. 7 Habits of Lucky Entrepreneurs evernote.com by Morgan Albaum
43. Session Notes: Serendipitous Success: 7 Habits of the Lucky Entrepreneur by LovelyPixels
44. Evergreen – Nurturing Your Customers From First Contact to Happily Every After [INBOUND Session Notes] by Blane McMichen
45. Michael King: Technical Marketing is Just the Price of Admission at #INBOUND15 by Ed Fry
46. The Case for Why Marketing Should Have Its Own Engineers – First Round Review by Nicholas Chimonas
47. [Notes] Jason Falls, “There Is No Fresh Broccoli” #INBOUND15 (Six-point blueprint to digital marketing success.) by John Schwartz
48. 7 Advices in How to build strong relationship w/ customers (my personal notes from different conferences) seven advices to build strong relationship with customers by Carlos Francín
49. Youtube Strategy – Amy Schmittauer by Amy Schmittauer
50. [session notes] Taking it Personal! Using the Hidden Power of Story to Transform Life and Business – at INBOUND15 customers.genie-connect.com by Fred Spring
51. HubSpot Releases New Features & Product Updates by John Middlebrook
52. [Notes | PPT Slides] Kieran Flanagan: “Marketer’s Guide to Growth Spurts” #INBOUND15 by Kieran Flanagan
53. Peg Fitzpatrick’s DIY Design Hacks at INBOUND 15 by Daizy Jain
54. Get Your Agency’s S**T Together by Marisa Smith at INBOUND15 by Abhinav Sahai
55. PR Analytics & Measurement by Christine Perkett at INBOUND15 by Priyanka Tuteja
56. Composing Your World at INBOUND15 by Kai Kight by Akhil Saxena
57. Building a B2C2B Content Strategy by Anum Hussain
58. Notes from Oli Gardner’s 4 Corners of Conversion by Ashley Irving
59. [SESSION NOTES] The Marketer’s Guide to Growth Spurts – Kieran Flanagan, Marketing Director (EMEA), Hubspot by Courtney Goes
60. Session Notes: Mark Sneider: How we’ve built our agency through pro-active prospecting + hubspot by Adam Gordon
61. [Notes] Corey Eridon, “18 Hard-Earned Lessons from the Trenches of the Hubspot Blog” #INBOUND15 by John Schwartz
62. How to grow the hell out of your agency: 11.5 upgrades to do today to grow tomorrow by Mike Lieberman
63. Anese Cavanaugh’s “Showing Up for Your Agency” by Diane Kulseth
64. Session notes: LUKE SUMMERFIELD: GROWTH DRIVEN DESIGN: A WEBSITE RETAINER MODEL THAT WILL TRANSFORM YOUR AGENCY by Adam Gordon
65. [Session Notes] – How to get the most out of Slideshare for Business #INBOUND15 by Rob Bois
66. #Inbound15 Live Blog: Slack CMO Answers SaaS Inbound Questions by Leah Faul
67. #Inbound15 Live blog: Dr. Carmen Simon’s ‘The Neuroscience of Memorable Content’ by Katy Katz
68. THE 30-MINUTE MARKETING PLAN: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
69. 18 HARD-EARNED LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE TRENCHES OF THE HUBSPOT BLOG: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
70. HOW TO READ A PERSON LIKE A BOOK: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
71. GROW YOUR BUSINESS BY MOVING TO AN INBOUND MARKETING STRATEGY: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
72. BUILDING A BETTER FEMALE LEADER: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
73. THE CHANGING FACE OF SEO IN 2015: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
74. STATE OF INFLUENCE MARKETING: HOW NEW ADVANCES ARE DRIVING SIGNIFICANT RESULTS: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
75. THE NEUROSCIENCE OF MEMORABLE CONTENT: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
76. THE FUTURE OF SEARCH: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
77. #INBOUND15: All my notes from Hubspot’s 2015 INBOUND conference by Kevin Claveria
78. [Session Notes] Eric Keiles: The 30-Minute Marketing Plan: Eliminate The Five Most Common Challenges With Executing Inbound Marketing by David G. Johnson
79. Session Notes: How HubSpot Delights Its Customers: Scaling a Team Fueled by Inbound by Ben Martin
80. Amy Schumer gives the Boston tech community a big dose of girl power by Sara Castellanos
81. #INBOUND15 – Facebook Marketing Resources from Mari Smith
82. The Top 10 Facebook and Twitter Advertising Hacks of All Time – Larry Kim’s Presentation at Hubspot’s INBOUND 2015 Marketing Conference
83. [VIDEO] INBOUND 15 recap with John and Lindsay from The Funnel Podcast
84. DESIGN FOR ACTION – A BLUEPRINT FOR CONTENT MARKETING: LIVE BLOGGING FROM #INBOUND15 by Nicki Hicks
85. [SLIDES] Evergreen: Nurturing Your Customers From First Contact to Happily Every After by Noah Fleming
86. [SLIDES] The Marketing Growth Hackathon: 25+ Tips, Tools and Resources to Accelerate Performance (#INBOUND15) by Paul Roetzer
87. [SLIDES] Fusing your personal and professional brands by Matt Lauzon
88. [SLIDES] How To Be A Disaster On Twitter by Danny Sullivan
89. [SLIDES] Calm Technology | Inbound 2015 Bold Talk by Amber Case
90. [SLIDES] Brand Positioning: How To Tell Your Story by Michael Troiano
91. [SLIDES] How To Be The Coolest Person At Your Funeral by Kenny Nguyen
92. SUMMARIZING SETH GODIN AT #INBOUND15 IN 16 TWEETS by Christopher S. Penn
93. INBOUNDers Taught Me That I Ooze Content by Natalie S. Burke
94. [VIDEO] INBOUND 2015 Spotlight: Jon Ronson by HubSpot
95. [SLIDES] Inbound2015 carole mahoney-the rules of inbound engagement by Carole Mahoney

Also, there are literally dozens, if not hundreds, of sessions posted at Inbound.org. I won’t link any more here since they’re already there. Instead, I’ll focus on ones that I found through Twitter.

INBOUND Reflections and Recaps

1. Our #INBOUND15 Live Blog by Carsten Rossi
2. My Top 5 Takeaways from Inbound Methodology at #INBOUND15 by Gabbi Hall
3. #Inbound15 – Live From Boston – Day 1 by Pat Armitage
4. HubSpot #INBOUND15 Day 1 Recap by Brian Onorio
5. From online to offline: Making new connections before INBOUND by Karl Sakas
6. HubSpot’s Inbound 2015 Conference – Day 1 by Vanessa Green
7. #INBOUND15 Recap: Day 1 by Kristin Masters
8. HubSpot’s #INBOUND15 Day 1 Recap by Heather Hurczyn
9. What you Forgot to Pack for #INBOUND2015 (and how to get it!) by Diane Kulseth
10. 2015 Hubspot #INBOUND15 Conference by Chris Eldridge
11. Inbound Takeaways, 2015 Edition – Day 1 by Zach McDonald
12. HubSpot’s #INBOUND15 Train Keeps Rolling by Dom Nicastro
13. Three Tuesday Takeaways from #INBOUND15 by HubSpot by Jennifer Hoverstad
14. #Inbound15 – Day 2 – Our Top 5 Highlights by Pat Armitage
15. Insights on INBOUND15 (so far) by Jim MacLeod
16. Hubspot’s Inbound 2015: My 1.5 Day Review and Recap by Ray Green
17. Day 1 of #Inbound15 by Carissa Faxlanger
18. HUBSPOT JUST LAUNCHED A GAME CHANGING ADVERTISING PLATFORM by Jesse Mawhinney
19. Day #1 Recap: The Sustain Team at INBOUND by Juhee Jain
20. [VIDEO] Talking #INBOUND15 LIVE from the Hallways by Jed Record
21. #INBOUND15 Recap: Day 2 by Kristin Masters
22. Day 2 of INBOUND 2015 by Orlando Werffeli
23. Thursday Takeaways and Recap at #INBOUND15 by HubSpot by Brian Onorio
24. #Inbound15 – Day 3 – The Best Of by Pat Armitage
25. Inbound takeaways, 2015 edition – Day 2 by Zach McDonald
26. Day 3 recap #inbound15 #O3Live by Jen Hoverstad
27. Day #2 Recap: The Sustain Team at INBOUND by Juhee Jain
28. Days 2 and 3 of #Inbound15
29. 7 Honest Observations of HubSpot’s Inbound 2015 Conference #Inbound15 by Marcus Sheridan
30. HubSpot’s #INBOUND15 Day 3&4 Recap by Heather Hurczyn
31. New Ideas and Time Tested Strategies at HubSpot’s INBOUND 2015 by Rebecca Benison
32. 7 Honest Observations of HubSpot’s Inbound 2015 Conference #Inbound15 by Marcus Sheridan
33. Inbound 2015 – Content Marketing Tips by Lucy Jones
34. The 4 keys to inbound marketing success by Susanna James

View #inbound15 for live updates.

[Update] Laura Fitton has posted a huge roundup on the INBOUND.com blog. Unless I receive specific requests, I will no longer be updating this post. Thank you all for your kind words and feedback about this project.

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August 29, 2015

Several months ago, I made what I considered to be a startling discovery: I am consistently in my fat-burning zone when I do Chinese martial arts forms.

To put that into perspective, my heart rate is usually 10-20 beats per minute higher doing martial arts than it is doing DDPYoga. I do DDPYoga to burn fat and to build muscle, so imagine my surprise when I noticed that martial arts get my heart pumping faster than a program that touts itself for its heart-rate-jacking, fat-blasting workouts. (See my experience with using the Fitbit Charge HR for DDPYoga here.)

I’m not knocking DDPYoga here. In fact, as I write this, I’m just a few hours short of acquiring the teaching hours I need to become certified.

What I’m saying is that Chinese martial arts have almost a stigma attached to them. Many consider them to be just a way for old people to stay healthy as they age. And yes, while that’s true, it’s only one aspect.

Chinese martial arts help people burn fat.

I’ve experimented a few ways – doing my tai chi chuan form and Hsing-i forms without any other workout for the day, doing those forms after DDPYoga workouts ranging in length from 20 to 40 to 60 minutes (which is usually my favorite) – and the bottom line is that Chinese martial arts raise your heart rate and allow you to get into your fat-burning zone.

Let’s take this morning, for example.

 

I started off doing the DDPYoga Mix Tape routine – one of the most challenging 35 minutes in that set. I was able to raise my heart rate quicker than I’m usually able to, shooting up into the 120s fairly early. (Remember, my fat-burning zone is 134-154.) I peaked in the workout at 159, and you can easily see from my chart that I backed off pretty quickly. Overall, I stayed at 122 average beats per minute.

It should be noted here that it’s hard for me to get in my fat-burning zone. Even when I’m putting all my energy into it, I’ll still see myself in the 120s, about 10 clicks below where I should be.

This might have to do with the placement of my Fitbit Charge HR. It needs to be placed on my wrist just right. I usually wear mine so that the sensor is on the top of my wrist, but for working out, I’ve found it works better when I turn it inside. If it wobbles from punching or it slides from sweating, I can see myself going down 30 bpm. Literally. So, I may be in my FBZ without even knowing it sometimes.

After I finished that, I went to go do my tai chi chuan form outside in the park since it was nice out this morning. That took me about 5 minutes. I followed that with the five Hsing-i chuan element forms and the four animal forms I know so far. Even though I was only working out about a third of the time with martial arts, this chart looks like I’m staying in my target zone longer. It’s been that way on other workouts, too – I’m consistently noticing myself in the 130-150 range.

The kicker here is that I don’t feel like I work as hard at Chinese martial arts as I do at DDPYoga. That’s usually the reason why I do it at the end of my workout, so I can cool down. With DDPYoga, I’m drenched at the end of the workout, “sweatin’ and swearin’,” so to speak. But with martial arts, what I feel like would be a “light” workout can still put me in my zone.

So, if you’re looking to complement your main exercise program, think about martial arts. In addition to all of the great values martial arts teaches, they’re also a fully capable weight-loss and muscle-building system.

If anybody has any heart rate advice related to martial arts, please comment.