Tabata Training For Micro Workouts

Tabata Workouts has been a trend for a number of years now and it has helped develop some pretty incredible results. The way it works is that you go hard for 20 seconds and rest for 10; repeat this for a total of 4 minutes or the equivalent to 8 rounds. Some do sprints, push-ups, squats, sit-ups, burpees and other forms of conditioning exercises. 

It's another idea to look at Micro Workouts where you don't have to do something very long but it's intense enough to really get you going. I approach it a little differently where I would take certain exercises (mainly isometrics and animal moves) and work them good instead of just typical bodyweight movements and fast paced exercises. For instance, yesterday I did an Isometric Workout using the Tabata Style timing but went for a total of 5 minutes instead of the typical 4. This consisted of holding the horse stance and the fist plank, going back and forth. The fist plank is a bit harder to hold than the palm version because of balance and the engagement of the tendons, ligaments and the core muscles. Managed to get through it very well and although it wasn't very challenging, it's still a good micro workout to build strength in a different way.

Isometrics aren't always just holding a position for a few seconds and moving on. They can be taxing when you really put them into perspective. When you do them Tabata Style, you don't just change an exercise on the fly, you have to be in control of the hold as well. A much harder Tabata Isometric Workout would be for the Core which consists of 3 exercises (The third is where you do one side and then the other) that really tackle the abs, lower back and obliques like crazy. I learned it from Red Delta Project which you can find here...No sit-ups or crunches, just pure intense isometrics that could make you feel more sore than dynamic movements.

Another approach to Tabata Style is doing the timing in reverse (10 on, 20 off instead of 20/10) and work certain exercises that way. I've seen Johnny Grube do this with his Rogue Bike for Sprint Training and regardless of how I feel about his idiotic rants, I respect his training style and it inspires me to do similar things (remember my workouts using the sandbell and step-ups? Those were inspired by him) so I took that approach and did a workout for 8 rounds of 10/20 doing Bear Crawls which is pretty intense and will get you huffing and puffing like motherfucker. As you know, Bear Crawls are one of the most rugged exercises to get you in shape quick, this is a great way to tackle them in a short period of time. 

Micro Workouts save you a bunch of time and can get in a workout in less than a few minutes than many can in an hour or more. Short and intense training builds a level of conditioning that gives off a different feeling. Explosive and resting very little in comparison to a 10 rep set and resting for like a minute. When it comes to Isometrics, it's being able to hold and switch very quickly and although 20 seconds may not seem like that long, depending on the kind of exercise, it can be so intense it feels like being hit with a crowbar and you're not even moving. Whether Isometrics or Movement Training, it can jack your heart rate up fast and build on explosive power and strength that lasts. Give it a go and see how you do. 

Hybrid Isometrics For Crazy Strength

 When it comes to Isometric Training, we generally learn 2 distinctive styles: Overcoming & Yielding. Overcoming Isometrics is using great force against something immovable such as a wall or a curl using a strap. It's one of the more common uses of isometrics as it teaches how to maximize the tension with such great force that only a few seconds will be needed. You can do longer durations of Overcoming Isometrics with less intensity which can aid in hypertrophy and endurance. Yielding Isometrics are in a nutshell, various exercises where you're fighting gravity and you keep a certain position or posture for a period of time such as a plank, wall sit, horse stance, hanging from a pullup bar or a stopping point in a pullup. These are more likely done using areas of Yoga or Qi Gong where posture type training focuses on the energy in your body while externally creating load. 

Both styles of Isometrics have their pros and cons and various people prefer one or the other like those who are fond of the Iso-Chain (Overcoming Isometric Device) and those (like a certain Blue-Collar roughneck) who like to hold horse stances and push-up positions for time in order to build long-term strength and conditioning (Yielding Bodyweight Isometrics). Personally I like the Overcoming style because I can generate as much force as possible for a few seconds and get better results. From time to time I'll do Yielding like holding a stance for 3 minutes or so, 1 minute fist plank or mid-range fist push-up, 3 minute bridges or several 1 minute sets of wall sits. Both work really well regardless.

Hybrid Isometrics however is a completely different animal that utilizes both styles at the same time and create such incredible strength that they're a bit more difficult than one style or the other. Imagine going against gravity but at the same time hit a sticking point that generates a lot of force to stay in place. Even very powerful guys who can do solid isometric work would have trouble holding a Hybrid version for more than a minute because you're not just engaging muscles, there's certain coordination involved and it takes another level of the mind/muscle connection for it to work. I would bet that even someone who can hold a 5 minute plank wouldn't even come close to that if they used a strap for the Hybrid version. Shaking like a leaf in a matter of seconds would be an understatement.

The great benefit you can get from Hybrid Isometrics is that they don't take long to feel everything. Because of the strength needed to stay in place but also push or pull against something immovable, you're getting the best of both worlds and can create another level of strength and endurance that could carry over to everyday life. Below are a couple examples of Hybrid Isometric Training that you can try. The first is the Hybrid Push-up where you would wrap a strap around the upper area of the back and press against the strap with bent arms in the push-up position. This works your whole body like crazy especially the core muscles just to stabilize you while you maintain incredible tension. The second is what I call the Isometric Zercher Squat where you put the strap around the inner area of the forearms (as if you're holding a barbell in the front of the body) and you get into a squat position (preferably mid range or a quarter squat) and drive upward. This really tackles the tendons and ligaments in the legs and strengthens the lower back and core muscles for stabilization. 

If you did just a couple sets each for a maximum of 30 seconds at a time, you'll be getting the workout of your life and feeling muscles you didn't think you could feel. Just a couple minutes and you'll feel like you just ran a marathon, it's about as intense as it can get. There are other exercises you can learn on Hybrid Isometrics by grabbing the book Overcoming Isometrics from Red Delta Project. One of the best books out there today on the subject of Isometric Training. 

Holy Shit It's Bigfoot

 If you get the reference, kudos to you. Can you last 3 minutes in the Bigfoot Exercise Challenge? 

It may not look like much but it is for sure a great exercise for the legs. It is a little out there especially with the name but the effects of it are more than what people think. When you first see it, where the hell is the resistance, what does the range of motion initially? Give it a go and see what happens.

Pretty quickly you'll feel it in your thighs and your ass. If you can do it for a good length of time, you'll feel quite the sensation (even within 30 seconds). It is no joke especially if you want to condition the legs along with strength & durability. Here's the reality, many people even at a higher level of training don't always know what works and what should be thrown in the trash (CrossFit anyone?). A lot live in this dogmatic world that consistently believes that more weight comes to more results, the greater range of motion means more results and that compound movements such as the Squat & Deadlift are the kings of developing the lower body. Don't get me wrong, those lifts are essential to many things such as powerlifting, strongman training and certain aspects of sports specific training but they're not Mount Olympus caliber either. 

Here's a shocker for you: Many movements end up being in a partial range of motion. Not only that, but also because of the dynamics and mechanics of a lot of movements, there are a ton of Semi-Unilateral & Semi-Bilateral moves that are similar to the Bigfoot Walk. Think about it for a second like a martial artist or a wrestler, if their stance is too wide, his power and speed won't be as effective plus they can be caught easier in specific positions. With a firm and balanced stance (watch a wrestler like Dan Gable or Jordan Burroughs), it's a little more closed in, it's not spread out and out of unison. Similar to a Hockey Player, he needs that balance on those skates, if his range of motion is out of sync with controlling the puck, he's going to tear a groin, skates will go berserk and he can't be at his best or even at the most basic level of play. 

This particular movement is a lot more useful to do for real life and sports. It's weird to look at but it's not any weirder than crouching and walking through bushes or practicing various stances in wrestling or other combat sports. You're only squatting down a bit but instead of coming back up, you stay in that position and move around or hold for a period of time, simple but not as easy as it looks. People with knee issues (small levels) could benefit from this exercise. It creates constant tension and you're shifting from one leg to another. 

This is just another look at the wide range of exercises you can learn from such as the ones from Movement 20XX that incorporate full body application and progressions that hit many muscle groups and can get you in killer condition and long-term strength whether you're an athlete, a complete beginner, older trainee or just those who want to be in shape for the long haul. Some of these may be too advanced for some but overall, these exercise will take you to places in your fitness journey you may haven't experienced before. 

Be adventurous, take up the challenge if you can. If you can't last the full 3 minutes that's ok, build up to it little by little. Keep striving to be better and keep being amazingly awesome.  

What's Another Way To Skyrocket Our Physical Fitness?

 There's a saying that The Sky's The Limit to what our potential could be. What if we went beyond that into the realms of the universe? What if we reached beyond the stars and found a way to take our potential to another level? Hell in this day and age we built rockets that shoot up into space yet in order to do that, we need a foundation in order to build these things, a base if you will. Being steady is another step like the rocket because if it isn't steady and flops around, it's not going anywhere. When it comes to training, we also need a base or a foundation to get on that track to greatness. We don't start out great but we build on the tools needed to become great.

Ancient Martial Artists use the word grounding as the foundation, in the western world, we call it stability. It's the source of all our power. A tree cannot grow without the aid of water and soil. Without the support, our power, our strength is as useless as a shoelace in a pool game. To hit our hardest and jump our highest, being still and firm is our first level of mastery. To create something awesome in motion, stillness is the groundwork. Some of us can develop it naturally, others it may take some time and learning to understand how our body's handle the prerequisites. We are shooting out into the universe after all but in order to do do that, we have to master the earth first.

This is one of those missing links to many people's regimens. We try to push harder and harder and not realize that we are setting ourselves back more than we are going forward. We become more limited than expanded. Just like the rocket, if there is a miscalculation, that thing will crash and burn. It needs to possess the qualities to reach it's fullest potential otherwise disaster strikes. Many methods work, there's no question about it but very few will take you to places that you didn't think were possible.

I want to help you find the tools you need to reach the potential that goes more than what others may say about you or what you say about yourself. We all have aspirations to be strong, fit and full of energy, but where's the ground work, where's the foundation. Whether you're an everyday person, an athlete, a farmer or a shoe salesman like Al Bundy, there's potential that's waiting to be unleashed. 

One way to see through this is taking on a course like Athlete 20XX where there's so much room to improve yourself on yet also room for failure but success comes from failing and failure is one of the best teachers we can ever have. Not telling you to fail on purpose but to help you find your success and give you some cool stuff to do in order to succeed.  

Lay the ground work and build on unleashing the strongest version of yourself. It won't be easy and it may not come naturally to you but with discipline, a creative mind and a thirst for physical knowledge is within the palm of your hands. Be successful and keep striving to be amazingly awesome. 

Is It Possible To Keep Up With Yourself Or Your Goals?

There are aspects of the fitness world that we try to emulate such as being so inspired by someone else that we do our damndest to be like them, train like them and follow their style. The truth is, being somebody else takes away your own individuality and rely on other forms of settling into your aspirations. Now, we can try to imitate them and pretend we are them but can never be exactly like them. 

We have trouble keeping up with ourselves so we're going to completely switch gears and become someone else completely? Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with wanting to change in order to grow and evolve. Sometimes we have to switch things up in order to become better versions of ourselves. Do we even know how to keep up with ourselves? Do we always know the direction we're going? No. We hit forks in the road, we may pick up someone along the way and there might be a new destination along the horizon we don't know about.

Setting goals is always admirable whether in the long term or the short term. We make goals such as PRs, certain length of time of a program, a number of pounds to lose or gain or we go for a number of reps or sets in a given workout. Are those goals sustainable and able to match up, or are they so unrealistic that we can't keep up with the demand? Sadly, very few go the first way and the majority go the second route and they don't even know it. It doesn't make them gullible or weak either, at times it's so demanding on us from others that we just simply can't do it and end up paying a price for it. 

I did have aspirations to train like the greats and had set goals but once I understood how unrealistic they were, during certain periods it was too late and I either got hurt or came close to blacking out. I can't be exactly like a Bud Jeffries or a Eero Westerberg, hell even a fucking Matt Furey but I can be me the best way I can and continue to learn. I admire these guys especially Bud, he was the real deal and if there's anyone worth being like (personality wise), it's him. The goals and demand I made for myself with intention but progressed methodically and intuitively paid off in more ways than one. I can go hard but not get injured, move well but not go to extremes like an acrobat and practice what benefits me, not what someone tells me what benefits me.

We have our own aspirations, our own goals, our own individuality and demands that concern our long term payoff as a person. We can't always keep up the demands of someone else, we take things as best as we can and not try to sprint during a marathon, it'll just wear us down and tear us apart in the end. 

The One Hour Superset Broadway

 When you get an idea in your head and act on it, sometimes it turns out exactly like you thought of and other times it looks good on paper but it becomes more when it actually happens. Yesterday's big workout not only was an ass kicker but was also one of the craziest workouts I've ever done. For an hour nonstop, I went back and forth carrying a 50 lb sandbell and 20 step ups. I don't think I've ever gone that long without ever resting.

My goal was to do at least 40-44 sets in that period of time and managed 46. Throughout, I was going faster and was in such a zone that nothing else around me mattered and focused on one thing only. So think about this for a second, 46 times I carried that sandbell 20 yards (shoulder carried 10 yards each side) and did 20 step ups (10 each leg) which comes out to carrying 4600 lbs (2.3 tons) over a period of 920 yards and managed 920 step ups. Weird thing was, I didn't feel tired or sore. When it was over and the endorphins kicked in hard, it was like a wave of positive energy and one of the most relaxing things I've ever felt. 

This was a big test for me when it comes to conditioning and mental toughness. I wasn't expecting to move that efficiently and never once thought about quitting. It was like a part of me just shut down and let something take over. I don't know if it was some kind of trance or a level of stamina I didn't think I had but I kept going and nothing was going to stop me. That kind of workout is on another level of insanity and it's like that governor we have in our minds like a Jiminy Cricket guiding you and telling you when to stop just went out the window and kept the doors shut. It felt like I was the only person in the world in that moment.

That hour at times felt the longest in my life and as the workout progressed, it felt like the easiest thing ever yet it's one of the most challenging anyone can do. It felt effortless but I assure you, it wasn't easy. As I woke up today and already shoveled snow twice starting at around 415 in the morning, I didn't feel sore whatsoever, no pain, no concerning stiffness and just had a pretty good level of energy. Being out in 15 degree weather, just by myself and listening to the wind and the quietness around me, it felt peaceful. I'm going to be shoveling probably 2-3 more times today minimum and that's ok, just part of life and doing what you can. 

Workouts today might be more Micro Style like Isometrics or Chest Expander work but it's still a way to keep active and keeping the joints loose throughout the day. Just wanted to share my 60 minute Broadway training session and that it was intense but a great way to test myself physically and mentally. Will I do it again? Most likely not anytime soon but you never know. 

Give yourself a challenge today whether big or small and see what you're capable of. Don't hurt yourself or force anything. Make it worthwhile but not so hard that it's going to injure you. Be safe out there and keep being amazingly awesome.   

Being Flexible Is Not Just About Stretching

Being limber and mobile is a couple key aspects to have in our lives otherwise, we would be walking around like Frankenstein (which in many cases today we are). Let alone look like the Walking Dead, being stiff isn't really all that fun. As we get older, we start to lose a few things here and there slowly and at times faster than others but there are ways to fix this. You don't have to be a contortionist or some incredibly flexible Gymnast or Cirque De Soleil performer but having solid flexibility throughout life keeps us as young as we can. 

Although I'm more in tuned with stretching routines or workouts that involve more dynamic movements like Joint Loosening, Animal Moves, some Bodyweight Exercises and from the Mace/Clubs I do like the old school stretching exercises that is supplementary to all those things. In the wintertime, when it starts to really come down, shoveling snow can be a hell of a workout especially if it's heavy slush, so it's important to have the muscles, joints and ligaments prepared for the task at hand. Being out in the cold a while can really tighten up the muscles so take some time before and after to relax them and keep them loose but not too loose, we don't want to be walking around like someone's higher than the International Space Station.

Stretching may seem silly to some people because they want to get to the training right off the bat and dig into that workout hard. The problem is, that can bite us in the ass if we're not careful. That's why we must keep up with the maintenance in order to perform at our best. It's why I start off nearly everyday with some form of flexibility, mobility and/or joint loosening work, at night I do my best to get in my bridges (wrestler's, front and occasionally gymnastic) hold the front and back bridges for 3 minutes each and the gymnastic bridge as long as needed. I love being able to move the way I need to and have had stints of being so damn stiff I couldn't get out of bed in my late teens.

Being flexible is more than just stretching, it's about giving your body the tools it needs to be in better health and well-being. I've known many who've been through the ringer and are so tight and knotted that they can barely tie their shoes let alone try to get out of bed without feeling some sort of pain. Remember that old adage no pain, no gain? Complete bullshit. Yes pain is telling you you're not dead but at the same time, pain is something nobody wants to really live with. If you're a laborer, a soldier, a cop, a fireman or a sadistic crossfitter maybe you're use to pain and it's a part of who you are and sacrificing your body for so long will make you so damn miserable it's unbearable.  

Stretching and Flexibility work doesn't have to be boring either, you can learn some cool dynamic moves, animal exercises that stretch many areas of the body, qi gong, mobility type training and bodyweight exercises like Bridging & Hindu Pushups. They all have a place in developing your elasticity and keeping it strong as long as you're consistent. Find some form of way to keep yourself in shape beyond just moving weight around or doing hundreds of pushups and/or squats. Use exercises that can heal and help you recover so you can have that energy, that drive and be able to perform great tasks while as a job or recreationally. One of the things to help slowing the aging process, limberness and strength to stay relaxed. The better your flexibility, the less chances of injuries.

Be flexible and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Heading Back To My Animal Roots

I go through many phases of training to keep my mind wanting to try new things or experiment with combinations of methods but what draws me back more than anything else is the Animal Movements and the Free Flowing Combos. Hell, I did a 4 1/2 minute workout straight through to this song by Beasto Blanco on the spot and just let the exercises come on their own. It felt great and also felt like a splash of cold water water on my face waking my ass up. It was natural and instinctive. Included Crawling, Stretching, Mobility, Switches, Backward Rolling & Shin To Feet Jumps.

Training this way takes out all the stuff about set & rep schemes and just move. The practice of getting into a flow, breathing into it and let your instincts takeover isn't easy to do but once you get it, there's nothing like it. Sort of like Rickson Gracie going into a meditative state as he moves throughout a workout and let's his intuitiveness handle it instead of just thinking about it and analyzing everything. That's one of the things I'm drawn to, a few sets and reps of something is cool but to go into a place in your mind as the animal within takes over is a whole other ball game that many don't quite understand.

We rarely ever use our instincts and we are told by some that our instincts aren't valued and we need to pay more attention to detail in the sense of thinking too much and analyzing the way we go through life. The analyzing can be good to a degree but at some point we need to learn how to just let go. If you've practiced the mechanics of any exercise method long enough, it becomes a muscle memory and instincts can shoot up depending on the situation. You've done it so many times that it becomes automatic. That's one of the key aspects of Animal Movements and Flow Combos, you practice them until they become a part of you, to the degree where you become something else for a few brief moments and your mind goes blank but your body is flooded with all this Physical Memory (if that's the right term to use).

With the Animal Deck Of Cards, sure there's reps to do. I've gone through enough times to wear the reps or steps are just part of it but I get in tuned to it more than any other type of workout using a deck of cards. It's not just a conditioning type workout, it's not just to get a sweat going and it sure as hell isn't a workout for the sake of working out, it's to embody being animalistic and letting go of all the crap around you. Without the cards, I free flow and see where it leads me. I play and develop that meditative state of just letting certain things take over. That's the true art of physical exercise. 

When I went through that workout while the song played, something just clicked that I haven't experienced in a while. Everything felt right, didn't think about anything else and just had this drive to let the music in and help me in that state of mind. It wasn't like an out of body experience or anything like that but I was in the moment, in the now and get in touch with my inner animal. I was conscious but the thought process wasn't really there and just let the body take over. It was surreal.

When you can train like that, there's no other feeling like it. The world you live in for a mere moment doesn't exist and all that is is the connection to your body and mind, no more, no less. Animal Movements can give you that in ways other exercises can't (at least in my experience). Give them a chance and see where they take you. You don't need to do exercises so damn advanced that they seem impossible, work the basics and form a way to flow through certain things. Let it be fun, challenging and not so much a chore or something that bores you to death. 

Be instinctive, build that mind/muscle connection with the aspects of nature and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Here's a little Push-Up & Scorpion Combo Flow you can try out to get some mobility, coordination, strength and agility. Do this as many times as you like and it can be a warm up or cool down in your regular workout.

Are Step Ups The Lazy Man's Equivalent Of Leg Training?

I saw this recently and it kind of made me laugh and just thought "wow, what kind of bullshit is this?" Now granted, Step Ups don't get as much attention as Squats and other forms of Leg work such as Sprints, Lunges and others but in reality, they're one of the key ingredients to building some crazy conditioning. Just ask Bob Backlund, think he's lazy?

Step Ups have been used for a very long time and they're a simulation of what people do everyday such as climbing stairs or going on rugged terrain, going up a ladder, hell if you're really ambitious you may find a tree to climb the branches. One of the things it was used for from a Fitness standpoint was to test students at Harvard to determine how their heart rate was after a 3 min set. Hence the name, the Harvard Step Test. Ever see those delivery boys going up and down those stairs in apartment buildings in New York or Chicago? You'd have to have some good legs in order to keep that job and some of those guys can haul ass. Doesn't sound lazy to me?

Bob Backlund, in my eyes was the man when it came to Step Ups. He started doing them sometime either during or after his reign as world champion before Vince Jr. took over the WWWF and made it the phenom today. After years of running jarred his knees and needed something to keep his legs strong yet durable and conditioned, he found out about the Harvard Step Test and since then, he's probably done more reps in more sessions than some of the greatest athletes before or since. He was still capable of doing high level reps in squats, push-ups, burpees and other exercises but he still believed the Step Ups made him the most conditioned he ever felt.

It really is a phenomenal exercise and many athletes and everyday people use it to help with building strength and stamina in the legs. Some have used it to train for long hikes or expeditions, others such as pro baseball players use it to help with their speed and strength throughout games. It's one of my personal favorites and have found them to be better than squats in many ways, not to say squats aren't good, they're awesome but Step Ups just have a better feeling and they're just different.

I've done hundreds of reps with both Squats and Step Ups and in comparison, Step Ups don't ever make me feel sore. On about 2-3 occasions I've done 1000 Step Ups and the fastest time was 50 minutes using a deck of cards and have done 1000 Squats twice ever and that fastest time was 33 minutes. These days if I did squats, it be around 100-300 and it's been a while since I did 500 in a row but during my circuit workouts, I would do them in sets of 10-20 depending on the circuit and the amount of squats in that circuit. For the Step Ups, around the same amount of reps either in a row or in a circuit. My favorite workout is to do a Superset of Step Ups & Shoulder Carrying my 50 lb Sandbell. Set a timer for let's say 20 min and just go back and forth with those exercises and I'd do around 10-15 reps per leg and carry the sandbell twice (once on each shoulder) for ten yards each without a rest. For circuits, I don't rest on those either. I have tested myself in doing 500 Step Ups and my time was just under 22 min (21:52 to be exact) and feel really proud of that.

Doing this exercise may not be the most spectacular looking, but it does work wonders beyond what some shmuck thinks it does or doesn't do. Take a step stool of about 12-15 inches in height and have at it. Some stools hold up to 300 lbs or more and others lower but for most people, as long as it's sturdy you're good to go and there are some that are foldable so you can store it easier. It gets you into pretty damn good condition if you're consistent with it. Be sure to understand your leg to step ratio because if you have a step up that's too short, it won't do a whole lot for you but also don't use a step that is too high for your legs or you'll overextend the hip joint and put more stress on your knees than you need to. I work with a 14 in stool from time to time and was my primary step stool until I started noticing some weird things in my hips and hamstrings so I switched to a 12 1/2 inch step stool and that felt just perfect for my leg to step ratio and can get in workouts that are challenging but it's not going to hurt my joints in the long run. 

You work with what's best for you and make it your strength. It's all about progressing and finding the right niche in your arsenal to where you're kicking ass but also being safe on your joints as well. I don't even really count reps much these days in this exercise mainly because I've set my goals to do as many as I wanted to test myself with and just make it more of a "moving meditation" type exercise where I set a timer and just do the amount of reps I want per leg and keep going until the timer runs out. Some like to count and time, others may have a goal in mind and go as much as they can, it's up to you and have fun with it. 

So is the Step Up the lazy man's exercise of training the legs? Hell no and whoever says it is, is either trying to sell you the illusion of something else pr bullshitting his way into some form of training that is superior. That's not the true way to train. What is superior is what gives you the best chance at being fit and continue doing it for a long time with very little chance at getting injured and creating challenges that are interesting to you. If Squats are more your thing, that's awesome and I hope you succeed at them, if they worked for the Great Gama and Jaromir Jagr, I have no doubt they can work for you, if you prefer Step Ups, have at it and make it the best damn exercise you can do because it keeps you wanting to come back to it. Now if you're one of those crazy bastards that has a mind for both, well bro, you've got some serious shit going on and I hope it gives you the most bad ass set of legs ever. 

Be strong, get conditioned, be safe and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Side Note......

Stay safe this holiday season and don't get trampled today for Black Friday. Be with your families and shop with better intentions than to try to go to the stores to get hurt over a damn TV. Here are some cool Black Friday Sales you can check out for your early Xmas Shopping. Happy Holidays and be good to each other. 

Amazon Black Friday Sales

Save 20% At Lost Empire Herbs on selected products using the code: CYBER2022 at checkout

Huge Savings at Vahva Fitness for some of the best fitness programs on the market today from Movement Training to Warrior. Get all three of the top programs there for a stupid price that's a one time fee. 

Check out some cool stuff at Onnit Fitness for equipment, programs and supplements to help your journey. 

Getting Stronger With The Chest Expander

 I don't know if I'm falling in love with the Chest Expander or just really getting into it and reaping the benefits of it. Almost everyday lately, I've been pulling and pressing that thing from as many directions as I can without straining myself. In terms of resistance, I've kept it around 100-140 lbs but some days I'll go lighter and every few days or so I would see what my max amount of resistance I can do for about 3-5 reps. I don't do multiple sets of an exercise, I just do 1 and go from one to another either quickly or after a short rest so I feel at my strongest.

The workouts feel great and I'm feeling a difference in my back and shoulders since this thing works out the kinks where my shoulders may have lacked. Because of doing Bear Crawls, Push-Ups from time to time and other ground movements in animal exercises you're hitting more of either the front or back of the shoulders and not so much all around that area of the body so the Chest Expander really targets the areas that might not be as strong and need a bit of a boost and not getting in just one or two areas. Some cables I'll use relatively the same colors and use all three bands, or two depending on the exercises I do and mix and match to work different pounds of resistance together.

I'm not trying to utilize a bodybuilding approach and nowhere near the level of some of the old timers like Fred Rollon or John Grimek and Reg Park. These guys knew realistic strength better than just about anybody when it came to Strand Pulling. In the old days and even today, the Expanders had springs you can work with up to I think like 6 at one time. There are elastic cables today you can use that go up to 5 but most Expanders have about 3-4. I try to max out what I can do and from my research, one of the tests of strength with it is the Front Chest Pull W/ Hands Inside. This sets the tone for how strong you are with that apparatus.

My max pull right now is at 160 lbs resistance but I know I can do better as time goes on. As you can see above, yes I have to really put effort into it and it's not something I take lightly. It's awesome to experiment but it's also important to respect the bands as well and be in control otherwise it'll hit you hard and it does fight back with a vengeance the heavier the resistance. 

When it comes to the exercises, I try to keep a bare minimum of about 6 exercises that are the foundational pulls and work other exercises to hit other parts of the upper body like curls, tricep extensions, lateral raises with lighter resistance and others. In a single workout, I might do up to 10-12 exercises. If it's a heavy day, I rest a bit longer between exercises and keep the reps to 3-10 depending how much I have in me to pull or work with. For lighter resistance, I keep it around 10-25 reps per exercise for more moderate to near conditioning type training while resting as little as possible to not at all. Have no clue how long a workout is, I just grab and go with it. 

Now because it's mainly an upper body training session, what do I do for legs? Simple really, Step Ups, Animal Walks, Isometrics, Pick Up & Carry Sandbells and there you go. You do want to keep things equal but more often than not, you either do more of one or the other and do your best to avoid injuries and getting stiff. I like to stretch the body out doing my Flow Training or do Isometric Type Stretches from Bob Anderson's Stretching Book but my most common routine are mobility type exercises and loosening up the joints. Flexibility is just as important as Strength Training and regardless of our strength, if we don't have solid mobility and flexibility, what good are we?

Workouts don't need to be super long in order to create results. It doesn't matter if you're into weights, bands, bodyweight, machines or hammers, if you got a good 45 minutes for a long one or 5 minutes for a short one, you can have sessions that will make you feel like you just went through hell. One of my favorites for conditioning is Circuit Training doing Bodyweight & Martial Arts type training. Those are the type of workouts where I can go hard but not rest at all. Keep it to 10 rounds max and you're good to go.

Back to the Chest Expanders shall we? The stronger you get, the more you'll start to see how great the carry over is to other things you may not have realized. Some of the worst injuries for athletes are in the shoulders such as those who are Pitchers, Olympic Lifters, Martial Artists and Wrestlers. Rotator Cuff injuries are the most common and although like I've written before, we can't avoid injuries all the time but we can greatly reduce them by practicing prehab exercises and strength training that keeps injuries at bay for as long as possible. The Chest Expander is one of those tools that can do that even for the most elite athletes. If you had injuries that have a chance of being healed, this thing can work wonders using lighter bands. 

I know people love going to the gym but there are times that it's not always possible like during a snow storm or during hurricane season. I'm not suggesting you try to do workouts in the middle of a blizzard, it's the idea that because Expanders are very affordable that you can have an entire gym in a little bag, it's there when you need it for those days when going to a gym isn't there. It gives you the freedom to train wherever you want and they can be done everyday or 2-3 times a week, it's up to you. Train according to your goals but also make compromises with yourself so you don't feel obligated or frustrated that because you may not always get to do one thing but have something there that can be useful in the meantime. 

Be strong, be resourceful and keep being amazingly awesome. HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!