Friday, September 20, 2013

Twenty LessonsFitness has Taught Me that I Wished I Knew at Twenty

This past June I turned thirty, and for the first time in my life I have found myself spending a lot of time reflecting upon how my life has gone thus far.  A lot has happened in my life during the past ten years: graduated from college and began my career in the fitness industry, got married, became a father, job transitions, and family challenges have all played a role in how I have matured during this time.  Major life changing events have taken place and I found that by looking back at how I have handled these changes, particularly in the times I screwed up, allows me to better prepare myself for the future.  Over the past ten years I have found that most problems and challenges in life can be minimized or avoided completely with a little forethought and planning.  Keep these words from Arnold Schwarzenegger in mind,

“What we face may look insurmountable. But I learned something from all those years of training and competing. I learned something from all those sets and reps when I didn’t think I could lift another ounce of weight. What I learned is that we are always stronger than we know.”

I do not agree with every that Schwarzenegger said or did; I certainly do not condone steroids as a healthy way to enhance the body.  But he is right about this: the journey to health and fitness is not just about looking good in the mirror or being a smaller size.  It is one of, if not the best way, to learn a lot of little lessons that add up to one important lesson: WE ARE ALWAYS STRONGER THAN WE KNOW.  So now I will share with you twenty little lessons that I have learned that build into that one big lesson.  These are not ranked in any particular order; I do not consider any one lesson to be more valuable than another because they are all valuable.

1.       Mirror Muscles Are not the important ones, everyone wants to improve what they see in the mirror but it is the muscles that are hard to see, and more often ignored, that will cause problems.  Emotions or muscles, ignoring what cannot be easily seen and leaving it untrained is a setup of injury or problems.

2.       Strength is Balance Just as income must equal or exceed expenses to avoid poverty; so too should the body be balanced: front to back, left to right, top to bottom, one foot to the other; strength is about balance the anterior chain muscles (front of the body) must balance in strength with the posterior chain muscles (back of the body).  If not, from top to bottom, the entire body will be out of alignment resulting debilitating pain.    A life out of balance is a life that fall apart under the stresses of life.

3.       Have the courage to train weakness Know that exercise you really hate doing?  You hate it because you are bad at it.  You are bad at it because those muscles are weak through that particular motion.  That elephant in the room that your friends and family know about but no one wants to mention? It is getting bigger because nothing is being done about it.  Avoiding weaknesses does not make them go away; it makes them worse.  Man up, attack the weakness, and turn it into strength.  Cowards cop out, heroes train.

4.       Deadlift Sometimes life gets heavy and burdens become hard to carry, DEADLIFT.  Nothing builds self-confidence like loading up a bar with heavy weights and then picking it up off the ground.  If you can deadlift more weight than what you weigh, life’s burdens will not weigh you down.

5.       Foundational Fundamentals The three greatest strength-training exercises are deadlifts, squats, and pushups.  Always be able to drop low to pick up heavy loads, stand tall under great weights, and pick your body up off the ground.  Life will require carrying heavy burdens, standing under great strain, and getting back up after being knocked down.  Don’t just do it, be ready and destroy it.

6.       Maintain Mobility It is not lost because you are getting old; it is lost because you have stopped moving.  If your two-year-old can squat his butt to the ground with perfect form but his grown father cannot, his father is getting stiff.  Quality movement is a natural skill that does not need to be taught.  Correcting poor movement patterns learned during times of strength imbalances is time consuming and annoying.  Stay loose to move well. Blessed are the flexible, life may force them to bend but they will not break.

7.       Use it or lose it Agility, speed, power, strength, endurance and flexibility are lost or improved by how you train.  If something seems harder it is because it not receiving the attention that it should.  Problems arise when attention to detail is lost.  Build a life that trains what needs improvement not what feels comfortable.

8.       Master Technique when in doubt, return to the fundamentals and seek to improve the basics.  If it seems too complicated or requires too much thinking to be instinctive, back up, return to your roots, and remaster the fundamentals.  Technical and form mastery will create more positive change in one session than a hundred sessions of sloppy work.  If you do not learn to do it right the first time, when will you find time to do it over?

9.       Work smart not hard A lot of time and effort get wasted by aimlessly throwing around energy into every single activity or opportunity that comes along.  Avoid this trap, ask: What is the priority?  Identify it.  What is the goal? Name it.  What is the program? Plan it. What is the time commitment? Schedule it.  Now, work it.  Any other method is a counter-productive waste of time.

10.   Variety prevents plateaus Work a specific priority for a specific period of time and then focus on a different goal.  The body adapts, so does the mind.  Stimulate but do not annihilate either one. If the process has become boring or lacks challenge it is time for a change.

11.   Patience Building a healthy life requires a life time.  It is a lifelong commitment.  If that shocks you, pick your jaw up off the floor.  Speaking of floors; everyone hits one of two floors in their life time.  You can hit the gym floor or you can hit the hospital floor.  One you can hit today; the other you hit in those last few moments of life, hopefully surrounded by loved ones.  Which floor do you want to be on?  Either way it will take a life time to get there.  Good health does not come to those who wait.  It comes to those who work their butts off. “When it comes to eating right and exercising, there is no ‘I’ll start tomorrow.’ Tomorrow is disease.”- V.L. Allinear.  Be impatient to get started on becoming healthy but stay patient on the journey.  It is a process, it will take time.

12.   Better than Yesterday That is the primary goal: what have you done today to make yourself better than you were yesterday.  Ask yourself this every day, and do something about it.  If you do, life will always get easier.

13.   Redefine Competition See that person sitting across the room, yeah, that man or woman who is younger, more attractive, and in better shape than you? FORGET ABOUT THAT PERSON.  Who cares what he or she looks like?  That individual is not you, nor your competition, nothing positive be gained by comparing yourself to that person.  Do you want to get to know the competition?  Step up to a mirror.  See that face staring back at you?  That is the only person you need to become better than.

14.   Bad genetics is not an excuse High Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, and Diabetes is in my family history.  So should I say that just because I have a family history of these problems that it is inevitable I will too?  Should I just give up and do nothing. NO! Doing nothing is stupid, all of these problems can be reduced or even eliminated with a healthy diet and regular exercise. Blaming genetics is denying responsibility for your own actions.

15.   It is impossible to out exercise poor nutrition Junk food makes a junk body.  If you are wondering why you are putting all this time and effort into exercise and your body is not changing the answer is simple: Your diet sucks!

16.   Food is not a reward Are you a dog to be rewarded with treats for performing a trick?  Food is fuel.  Do you want your body to run like a Ferrari or a Pinto?  I am not saying you can’t give yourself a treat on a special occasion but if food is a reward for every good little thing you accomplish, do not expect to operate like a high performance machine.  No amount of exercise will overcome a crappy diet.

17.   Drop it to keep it hot Even a fat loss of five pounds may drastically improve physical performance.  Keep the intensity high in the gym and the intensity will stay high at home.  Trust me; your spouse will thank you.

18.   Become a machine Do not waste time on them.  Everything that can be done on a cardio or weight machine in the gym is far more effective if done with free weights, dumb bells, body weights, or outside.  Forget the machines; BE THE MACHINE.

19.   Fitness mimics Life I am constantly reminded of how much fitness mimics real life.  It takes perseverance and dedication to succeed.  It takes believing that end goal is worth the present struggle.  A healthy life requires courage to say no to all of the negative influences around you and stay true to your hopes and desires.


20.   Attitude determines success Every person will exercise at some point in their life.  A person will either do it out of choice or because of a doctor’s orders.  Which person sounds like he or she has a positive, winning attitude?  People who freely choose to do something about their health will ultimately succeed.  A person chooses to win the moment he or she chooses to accept reality:  it is your life, it is your body, and it is your responsibility.  Good or bad you will live with the consequences of your choice.  It is never too late to choose health.  Choose wisely.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Bodyweight Blitz


Bodyweight Blitz
                Bodyweight training has grown has popularity over the last few years, particularly within the realm of the at home workout DVD.  P90X, Insanity, Zumba, and Tae Bo, just to name a few, are among the best-selling fitness programs ever.  The common element of all these programs is that the individual person’s own body is providing the resistance.  So the question is: can body weight alone provide enough stimulation to increase a person’s overall fitness, or are programs like this just a bunch of clever and gimmicky marketing?  And, why not?  There are several advantages to this type of training.  My apologies for sounding like an infomercial:
·         Convenient:  Body weight training can be done virtually anywhere, including at home, no gym required
·         Improved overall Conditioning: Strength, Coordination, Increased Muscle-Mass, Fat-Burning, Endurance, and Quality of Movement can all be improved by training using body weight as a resistance
·         Very little space required: don’t waste space by cluttering it up with bulky equipment
·         No Spotter Needed: It is safe to do by yourself
·         Combine Strength Training with Endurance Training

The short answer is: YES.  Body weight conditioning can be a great way to build a program by itself or as an addition to a weightlifting or cardio-based program.  The great thing about body weight training is that it improves Functional Strength.  That is a term that has been thrown around a lot the last couple of years without a lot of clarity given to what that means.  To say that training is creating an improvement in functional strength means that the training activities being performed mimic a specific movement pattern of a sport or other physical activity.  This is more than just being able to perform an exercise with heavier weights or the same weight for more repetitions; it is direct improvement to the quality of movement on the playing field during the competition.
               
Just about every person’s fitness goal falls into one of six categories: hypertrophy (muscle-building), maximum strength, maximum power, maximum speed, fat loss, and endurance.  A training program can be designed to maximize any one of these goals and there is some overlap between some of the goals.  However, any program based in body weight training or not, should be created with the intention of focusing on primarily one goal at a time.  The key to successfully utilizing body weight training to accomplish these goals is to understand four things: 1) Appropriate repetition range or time duration for activity; 2) Appropriate Rest Period; 3) Work to Rest Ratio; and 4) Real-life training examples.  The table below outlines how to classify and design a program aimed at achieving these goals.  It is important to understand, when designing a program that having the right balance of repetition ranges, time durations, and rest period maximizes the efficiency of training for the desired goal.
Goal
Rep Range/Duration
Rest Period
Work to Rest Ratio
Real-Life Example
Hypertrophy
8 to 12/45-60 seconds
45-90 seconds
1:1-2
Body Builder
Max Strength
1 to 6/0-30 seconds
2-3 minutes
1:2-3
Power Lifter
Max Power
1 to 3/0-15 seconds
3-4 minutes
1:3-4
Olympic Lifter
Max Speed
1/0-10 seconds
45-60 seconds
1:4-5
Sprinter
Fat Loss
30 seconds to several minutes
Equal or less than activity
1:<1
Everyone Else
Endurance
15+/60+ seconds
No Rest
1
Marathoner
The key to reaching these goals using body weight training is identifying the primary goal and design workouts using the appropriate protocol.  One of the problems that people run into with body weight training is that body quickly adapts to moving itself.  Without increased stimulation a body weight exercise that may have originally started as a power exercise can quickly turn into an endurance exercise. 

Take a box jump as an example; it is great exercise for improving explosive lower body power.  The box jump is performed by starting on the floor, and with both feet together, jumping on to an elevated platform.  To perform this exercise to improve power, a person would only need to complete 1 to 3 repetitions or for less than 15 seconds. Resting 3 to four times longer than the amount of time required to perform the activity.  Performing the exercise for more than a few repetitions or shortening the rest period would change this from power training into hypertrophy training; enough repetitions or inadequate rest periods when turn this into an endurance exercise.  When training for power increasing the number of repetitions per set or increasing the time duration of the set is counterproductive.  To increase power with a box jump, increase the height of the jump, not the number of reps.

A bodyweight workout does not have to target just one goal; it can target two goals.  A well designed bodyweight, power based workout can actually be designed to train three or more goals.  Here is how to do that.  Keeping the primary goal as power training, the second goal will be fat loss with the third goal being endurance.  To accomplish this, the workout will be designed as a circuit, training the entire body in one workout.  This will allow the workout to train for power while keeping the body moving enough to burn plenty of calories for fat-burning and building endurance.  Perform each exercise for the desired number of reps, rest for the specified time, and then begin the next exercise.  Follow this pattern until all exercises have been completed.  Doing this will allow adequate rest for the muscle groups to meet the intense demand of the low repetitions while keeping the body moving with short rest between exercises, creating a fat-burning effect.  To build endurance, simply complete as many rounds as possible.  Remember to follow the designated rest periods.  Eliminate the rest periods will turn this into a strictly endurance workout.  Prolonging the rest periods will eliminate the power training aspect.
Exercise
Repetitions
Rest Period
Work to Rest Ratio
Box Jumps
1 to 5
15 seconds
1:3-4
TRX Push Ups
1 to 5
15 seconds
1:3-4
Skater Jumps
1 to 5
15 seconds
1:3-4
TRX Row
1 to 5
15 seconds
1:3-4

Box Jumps
Begin by standing with the feet shoulder-width apart.  Lower into a squat while simultaneously swinging the arms back behind the body.  Explosively swing the arms forward while at the same time jumping and lifting both feet off of the ground, and, keeping the feet shoulder-width apart, land on the platform with both feet at the same time. Upon landing lower into a squat to cushion the pressure of the landing, then, step of the platform, one foot at a time, or, jump off with both feet together.  If jumping off, lower into a squat upon landing to cushion the pressure.  That is one rep.
Skater Jumps
Begin by standing with the feet shoulder-width apart.  Jump to the right as far as possible and land on the right foot with the left foot off of the ground.  Jump back to the left, landing on the left foot with the right foot off of the ground.  That is one rep.




TRX Push Ups
Adjust the TRX straps so that the handles are level with the knees.  Firmly grasp the handles and place the body into the top of a pushup position.  Lower the body into a push up and the press the body back to the top of the push up position.  That is one rep.



TRX Pull Ups
Adjust the handle length of the TRX straps until they are level with the chest.  Grasp both handles firmly and walk the feet forward until the handles are positioned directly above the chest.  Keep the body in a straight line from the head to the toes.  Contract the muscles of the back and pull the body up until the chest is directly underneath the handles. Return to the start position.  That is one rep.

Bodyweight conditioning is a great tool to have in your fitness tool bag.  It is a great way to build an entire program or works as a substitute for those times when you are too busy to get to the gym.  If your program is stuck in a rut consider adding body weight training into the mix.  Below is a list of fantastic body weight exercises that can be adapted to meet any training goal.

Body Weight Exercises


Chest/Shoulders
Push Ups on Knees
Push Ups on Feet
Push Ups w/Feet Elevated
Clapping Push Ups
TRX Push Ups
Handstand Push Ups
Back/Biceps
Chin Up
Narrow Grip Pull Up
Wide Grip Pull Up
TRX Pull Up
Horizontal Pull Up
Horizontal Towel Pull Up
Horizontal Pull Up w/ feet on a crunch ball
Legs
Squats
One-Leg Squats
Forward Lunges
Backward Lunges
Sideways Lunges
Skipping
Broad Jumps
Skater Jumps
Box Jumps
Squat-Jumps