Subscribe!
Burn with Kearns: Going from zero to hero in strength and conditioning – Kevin Kearns
From training UFC athletes like Kenny Florain, Marcus Davis, and alike performing MMA fitness certifications around the world, to writing my an anti-bullying book, Coach Kearns, aka “Dr Evil” has done it all.
My Martial Arts leap of faith body and mind step 1
When you consider my upbringing it’s amazing how and why I ended up working in one of the fastest growing sports and with some of the top athletes in that sport. I was the kid who was “Always Picked Last” (title of my book) for all sports.
When many people look at me and say, “No way you were that guy in the hood that sucked at everything?!” I answer, “That is correct and in the past.” After they read my anti-bullying book most times I have to help them close their gaping mouths from the shock. Now I’m not going to say my childhood was all bad and I had it worse than any other kid. That is a matter of perspective. Most of it was really good, but when it came to sports that was another matter. There was an inherent fear inside me every time my neighborhood “friends” gathered at the local school yard to play baseball or football. God forbid if we ever played basketball or hockey. I looked like a reject from the days of Sparta. My parents would have cast me out just for my ungainly moves, like a chicken running around with its head cut off.
Yes, that is correct, the guy who worked with 15 Pro UFC fighters, pioneered MMA conditioning techniques, published his own MMA fitness DVD series and still writes for “Fighters Only” was a born loser. How do I know that? From the daily glares I received from my “friends.” As they say over here, “ The proof was in the pudding.” I barely got on base when I played baseball and forget about catching a fly ball. No way! In football, I was ham-fisted when catching or throwing the ball. The only sport I had half a chance of playing was softball because the ball was so big.
Martial Arts leap of faith 1
As fate would have it my luck was going to change in this arena. At first not for the best more for the worst in the beginning. My father’s health was not good , worse than I realized, and at the age of 48 he passed away from alcoholism. I was a mere 12 years old. The bullying got worse; much worse. Then it all changed when my uncle suggested I take a karate class. I was in awe of karate and the people who trained in it. I loved every second of it. I worked out and practiced every day. In my basement I would practice kicks on the wall so much I would wear out the paint on the wall! At 14 my mother bought me a 50 lb heavy bag. I broke it in half.
To this day after 37 years I train regular in muay thai , kung fu and chi cung 2 to 3 x a week. Besides fitness it gives me 5 things for my mind. Effort, etiquette, discipline, self-control and character.
Strength Training leap of faith step 2
I learned rather quickly after losing my father when I was 12 that asking for help is ok. So, of course I admired the 20 and 30 something higher belts that look like Navy Seals cut out of stone. I wanted to desperately learn how to build my body up. I read many articles on Bruce Lee and how small he was. But he was ripped and lifted weights. When I asked the 20 and 30 something higher belts what they did, besides martial arts training , they answered lifting weights. They started to show me how to lift weights.
I was amazed how quickly my body responded and how the principles of martial arts also applied to strength training. I was 14 years old then. I have been performing my own workouts for 36 years now! At 50 I’m fitter and stronger than most 30 somethings. Today I continually do some style (Burn with Kearns, of course ) high intensity strength training 3 to 4 days a week.
Nutrition leap of faith step 3
I realized early on you are what you eat. It really is true. As a kid I never ate vegetables and hardly ever ate fish. Any vegetables we ate growing up were from a can. Then one day I grab my handy fitness magazine. One of my idols, “Arnold”, was talking about how the body needed fruits and veggies in order for the enzymatic reactions to build muscles . That’s all I had to hear! I was sold on that one.
I started by introducing spinach salads even at breakfast. Later on I learned a concept of what is called a “rotating taxonomy” diet. In other words, I rotate my foods constantly. Our ancestors had to rotate their foods. They never knew when they were going to eat. As we became an agricultural society, we ate with the seasons. When you rotate your foods, it keeps your body and digestion on its “ toes” . Your nutritional needs are different every day. The best way to think of it is this “ eat a rainbow of food” on a daily basis. This has helped me stay at 168 lbs and 9 percent body fat at 50 years old!
Yoga leap of faith number 4
About 12 years ago I developed plantar fasiacitis in both my feet from running stairs. As a strength coach to over 15 UFC fighters at the time, I thought it was my job to push myself harder all the time. “Of course I should – I’m the S and C coach of fighters. It’s my job to beat on myself,” I thought. That is when a little thing like ego kicked in. I finally realized how much damage I was doing to myself when I did not “back off” – and less is more. My feet hurt every day I woke up and had to put sneakers on to walk on my floor. Then a new concept came into my life. Yoga! (which is possibly 25,000 years old). My wife introduced me to it 9 years ago. Originally, I called it “yogurt’ vs yoga. I just thought it was not for me. It was for the guy who looks like a tool pick and eats one grain of rice per day.
When I first started yoga the attraction was to fix my feet and because it’s quite the physical workout. Over time I realized I was not just doing it for physical workout but for the mental and emotional piece. It was good for my soul.
Today I could not imagine not being in a hot yoga room at least 2 x per week. It has helped me manage much of life present and past. My deep seeded anger towards those of my younger days when I was bullied began to soften. Instead of seeing them with contempt, I started becoming curious about why they bullied me. I found out those who tormented me were also tormented by others or tormented in other ways. You start to see things differently when you are sitting a warrior 2 pose for 2 minutes and it’s 95 plus degrees. You learn to relax and take life one breath at a time. You realize no matter what is happening to you, you work on taking your journey 1 step at a time.
Progress not perfection leap of faith 5
I am by no means perfect. Perfection is an illusion in my mind. I work on reminding myself daily that “I am in progress” in this life, in my business, in my health, and in my family. Every moment is different as is every day. I try to remind myself of that. All my experiences thus far, the hard (death of my father, being bullied) and soft (getting married, exercising, my work, writing my book) have led me to this place now. I don’t need to be perfect and neither do you. You just need to keep moving forward towards what you want out of your life. And yes, get frustrated, anger, eat dark chocolate, and eat pizza. Then I pause and “reel” myself back into my purpose and my mission in my life. To help people from all walks of life become fit mentally, physically, and emotionally through educating them on nutrition, fitness, and mental wellness by any means necessary. Find your purpose and keep going forward towards it. No matter what obstacles get in your way.
Martial arts became that thing I was good at that call to me. I’m not saying it has to be your thing. I am saying find that one thing that speaks to you. On the flip side I am advocating a sound diet and exercise. If you lack confidence or are not athletic, fitness and diet is the one concept you can control and become better at. Both pay huge dividends on individual basis in the way building confidence, presence of mind, and personal wellness. Not mentioned it will keep you looking younger than everyone else. (I love it when people ask to see my license!).
Watch my videos, here… as summer winds to a close you’ll want to keep it outdoors as long as you can.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel for new videos, too!
___
To read all Burn with Kearns articles in RINewsToday, click below:
Coach Kevin Kearns, BS FMS CPT
BurnWithKearns.com – Direct: 508 404 8503
Kearns is hosting a fundraiser to help remove the stigma of mental illness. More information can be found by visiting https://gofund.me/5a15b749.
Both of Coach Kearns’ books may be purchased on www.Amazon.com. For more information about Coach Kevin Kearns, including scheduling speaking engagements and classes (both online and in person), please contact him at 508-404-8503 or [email protected].
Author of “There’s Light In The Tunnel” How to Survive and Thrive with Depression – “Always Picked Last“ A guide to navigating bullies on Amazon and Audible
youtube.com/user/burnwithkearns
https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/in/burnwithkearns
Coach Kevin Kearns has been coaching in the world of fitness, nutrition, and tactical self defense for over 3 decades. As the former conditioning coach to 15 UFC Pro Fighters, and ranked in the Top 5 in the UFC , he is no stranger to the the importance of proper nutrition and proper mindset programming. He has long advocated to all his clients – athletes or the general population – about the importance of programming mind, body and spirit.
Coach Kevin Kearns BS FMS CPT – Former conditioning coach to 15 UFC Pros Ranked in Top 5 by the UFC Personal Fitness Coach, Author, Columnist, Motivational Speaker, Corporate Wellness Consultant, Youth Wellness Program Provider, Certification Specialist, Personal Self Defense, and Law Enforcement Defensive Tactics Specialist Www.BurnWithKearns.com