Unconventional Athletes Issue 3

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MINDSET! POSITIVE FOCUS!
Mindset is everything in film prep; the
mind is what will drive your body. You
cannot have a strong mind without a
strong body, nor can you have a strong
body without a strong mind. The mind
should still be first priority in training.
Positive thoughts reinforce positive
actions and the will to succeed on what
task is your focus. What skills can prep
you in this matter; is seated
meditation and active meditation.
MEDITATE THE MONKEY!
Seated meditation is essential because
it can teach you to have clear focus and
have clarity. To keep you from having
what is called a monkey mind; where
your thoughts are all over the place in
chaotic fashion. In film your focus
should clearly be your character andthe
project at the time. Meditation will
help your mind endure the long hours
of filming and random schedules.
Basic Chan seated meditation practice
will only take 1-5 mins any time of
the day. Focus solely on your breathing
and don’t let your thoughts stray from
your breath. Slow inhale for 5
seconds -> hold your breath 5 seconds
-> exhale slowly for 5 seconds -> with
empty lungs hold for 5 seconds -> then
repeat. At first it will feel like you’re
suffocating, but you'll quickly correct it
once you realise you're in control.
ACTIVE MEDITATION= STRONg FOCUS
Active meditation is clearly essential for
the stuntman and utilising your skills of
mind, strength, and endurance. Active
meditation is best described as a single
focus or thought in motion while
enduring body movements. The
practice of mainstream Yoga is a great
example. In Yoga you are generally
required to endure deep postures that
transition to other postures while
keeping your mental cool. Active
meditation of course can go way
beyond the practice of Yoga, any
physical training is active meditation if
there is a strong focus. Certain martial
arts will relate to this practice
immensely.
STUNTMAN STRENgTH
Strength is a must for any stuntman,
It is your lifeline to preventing any
injuries. Stuntman work is exciting, but
also dangerous. Real strength
training is what will protect your
joints and improve your longevity to
tackle life. The practice of strength is
to overcome fear of lifting heavy
weight, or in general just create great
amounts of muscle tension. This can
be done with static isometric
movements, or dynamic movements
in a methodical, controlled state
while maintaining solid range of
motion. Strength is a skill and must
be practiced. Strength practice is a
movement which can give you high
amounts of tension in a safe as
possible fashion. Example of this is a
heavy barbell deadlift, kettlebell
shoulder press, or even a one arm
pushup. These 3 movements can be
practiced in a routine of a “Rising
Ladder”. Give yourself a goal of
repetitions which in turn will become
your sets. For example let’s use the
number 5. Five will be your total sets,
so your first set will only be 1
repetition of your movement. You
will then take a break. When ready,
your 2nd set will be 2 repetitions,
and so forth. An up-ladder is simple
and sinister; it will always challenge
your body. Remember “strength is
what makes all values possible”.
ENDURANCE: lEARN TO WAlK
BEFORE YOU RUN!
Endurance needs to be looked at as
secondary to strength, you must be
strong first. If you jump right into
doing endurance based practices you
are just asking for trouble. Learn to
walk before you run and gradually
develop the skill of endurance.
Endurance is really what all athletes
are striving for, it’s about performing
physical tasks longer. Endurance tests
how well your strength development
is in an applied state. Any stuntman
would want to develop this skill, being
long hours and high intensity scenes
that could be required in the project.
A good way to develop this is through
high repetition exercises, circuit timed
training, and of course the Tabata. I
highly recommend adding Tabatas to
your current routine as a finisher to
your workout. The idea of a Tabata is
Issue 03 - Volume 1 Page 28