There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Many people often think that if they lift as heavy as possible, or use as much volume (sets and reps) as possible they will […]
There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Many people often think that if they lift as heavy as possible, or use as much volume (sets and reps) as possible they will […]
There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Workout #1 When I think of athletes with huge quads, I think of Olympic lifters. They perform a ton of fronts, heavy. So […]
During the last several years, the loaded carry (most notable the farmers carry) has exploded on the scene. Everyone from bodybuilders to Cross fitters has started to include various loaded carries into their routines and for a good reason. A loaded carry is where an athlete picks up and carries a heavy object and walks with it for an extended period of time or distance. This can be done with various objects, such as dumbbells, […]
The longer that I am in the lifting game, the more I look to be more efficient with my workouts. In a perfect world, I would write programs for my clients and myself that would include the following: Soft tissue works with various foam rollers and massage balls Corrective exercises to improve any dysfunctions Mobility work Stretching Groundwork (rolling, crawling, Get-ups, etc.) Nervous system development/power work (med ball throws and plyos) Strength training Conditioning/cardiovascular work […]
The best way to build muscle is to perform full-body strength training sessions frequently throughout the week. The combo of lower and upper-body movement that involves multiple muscle groups done in a circuit fashion stimulates anabolic hormones and protein synthesis which are two of the major players at stimulating muscle growth. Performing multiple full-body strength routines must be done correctly in order to produce results. Hitting each muscle group 3 to 4 days per week […]
Power training is a vital piece of the functional training puzzle for both competitive athletes & general population clients. Progressive exposure to high-velocity movements trains the nervous system to recruit high-threshold motor units, reflexively stabilize joints and develop the local tissue resiliency necessary to withstand the demands of high-velocity sports, making it a valuable tool for both performance enhancement and injury reduction. Throwing low/moderate weight medicine balls with intent and at high velocity promotes the […]
In 2017, I wrote a Complete Programming Guide For Small Group and Large Group Personal Training Since then, there has been over 100 of our intern at State of Fitness that have read the manual. Each semester, our interns are required to turn in a detailed summary of what they learned from the manual. One of our amazing interns, Maryam Abbasi, has written a fantastic summary I wanted to share. You can click io the […]
Real Workouts. Real Eating. Real life.
Most people don’t know this but good human movement starts from the ground up. Before we stand, walk, run and jump, we start on the ground. As Gray Cook puts it, we need the 4 B’s: Breathe, bend, balance and bounce. When we are born, we do not have the ability to do much. As we age, we begin with tummy time, crawling, rolling over, standing up, and eventually walking. The funny thing is that as we continue to age, we lose the ability to do these primal movements.
Many of us look at exercise as running, biking, swimming and lifting weights. These are all true forms of working out but are not the only thing we should be focusing on. Let me explain. As we begin life in the “real world”, starting when we go to school, we begin to sit more and not move as much. Kids move more than adults, that’s for sure. When we get to about the college age, we sit even more and move even less. At that time, we start to lose some abilities we once acquired simply by growing up. As time goes on, we lose the ability to roll over, get up off the ground, kneel and squat. This may sound silly to you but this is true and well documented.
It is not news that we sit too much and don’t move enough. So you should understand that our posture and strength diminishes as we age. So how can we get pure core strength and mobility back? We can do this by simply starting on the ground and working our way up. These “primitive” patterns can help us increase core strength, improve movement patterns, and help us get back to moving how we were made to move. Let’s go back to basics and reclaim what we once had but lost over time due to our daily limitations. Include the 5 movements below in your daily warm-up and watch all of your athletic movements improve.
The Turkish Get-Up
Start by lying on your side (for purposes of explanation we will assume you start on your L. side). With your L. hand grasp a kettlebell or dumbbell (15lbs or less). With the weight in your hand roll onto your back and press the weight straight up like a bench press. The R. leg will go straight out in front of you while the L. knee stays bent with the foot on the ground. Place the R. arm on the ground to stabilize your body and use your L. leg to help propel your body up off the ground. Do all of this while maintaining the weight up above you with the arm extended. Next take your R. leg and kick it behind your body. If you can’t do this part of the TGU then stop there and go back to the ground slowly. Once the R. leg is behind you from this lunge position stand up while maintaining the weight up in the air. Now reverse everything you just did and go back to the side lying position. Do this as many times as you can until technique breaks down. Please don’t perform reps with poor form. Quality over quantity on this one!
Inch Worm
This simple exercise helps increase core stability, shoulder stability and improves overall flexibility. It mimics a crawling movement while maintaining a strong core. You simply keep your arms and legs straight at all times while walking your hands out as far as possible, keeping your body straight. Walk back in maintaining the same posture and repeat.
Bird/Dog
Starting on all fours on the ground is an essential movement to everyone. The “quadruped”, better known as “on all fours,” is a position/movement we lose as we age. The bird dog is the perfect movement to mimic core rotary stability when we are younger.
You simply start on all fours in good alignment and then extend the opposite arm and leg. As you return, pull the hand and knee to the ground together and back out to increase the challenge of the core rotary stability strength.
The bird-dog is an essential core exercise that can be incorporated into most strength training protocols. The bird/dog requires asymmetrical trunk stability in both the sagittal and transverse planes of movement. Consider this an effective exercise to maintain a healthy low back.
Bear Crawl
If you have kids, I am sure you can remember the first time your child started to crawl. It was an amazing part of the growing up process. Do you remember how much they struggled at first? I do. There is a reason for this. Crawling is hard work! Once we start to walk, we forget about crawling. Walking is a much easier way to move around. We humans always take the path of least resistance. What we forget is that the hard stuff can benefit us.
At State of Fitness, we use crawling very regularly. Our clients have a love/hate relationship with the crawl. They notice that the more they crawl, the better their shoulders feel and the stronger their core becomes. They also get a great metabolic effect from the movement thus leading to more fat loss. Try crawling for 40 meters and see just how great of an exercise it is!
Spidermans
I learned this exercise about 6 years ago and have kept it as a staple in my programs ever since. This exercise helps improve hip mobility as well as core and shoulder strength. You start in the push-up position and then lift one leg and try to put it right next to your hand. If you watch a young kid, they do this with ease. For adults, we have lost strength and mobility so it is a little harder.
If you want to gain strength, improve movement, improve your sports and just plain feel better, sometimes you just need to start with the basics and get on the ground.
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