Fresh Ideas: 3 Deadly Complexes For Fat Loss and Conditioning
How do people go to the gym day after day and do the same 30 minute workout on the elliptical machine? Honestly I would rather do some sprints in the parking lot outside of a 7/11 in a rival gang’s territory at 2am with nothing on but a game worn jock strap from Terry Tate.
No, but seriously, I would rather challenge myself and do something different every time. That is where this blog post comes in. I hope to provide some fresh ideas for you to use when it comes to the end of the workout, when you need to get that finisher in. Now hold on to your butts and crack open a Spike!
1. Burpee/Mountain Climber Combo: This one is pretty straight forward. You give yourself a rep amount to hit for each movement. I am a fan of doing 60 mountain climbers (30/side) and 12 burpees (with the push up). Rest for 60 seconds in between each round. Rinse and repeat at least 4 times and try to work up to 8 or 10. Keep the trash can near by…
2. TRX Circuit from Hell: OK, now things get interesting. That TRX in your garage isn’t just for rows and planks, it can be used for some of the hardest complexes imaginable. For this you will go from one exercise to the next, performing 10 reps (per side if for each movement. The exercises are: Atomic push ups, rear foot elevated split squat, leg curls, rollouts, and rows. Try to get through the whole circuit in under three minutes.
3. Grab bag Finisher: This is the one I use the most. I put together five or six exercises and put them into a complex. They usually involve low risk movements with lighter weights than normal, for obvious reasons. Think medballs, kettlebells, slideboards, TRX, body weight, and barbell exercises. Here is one you can try today that will have you screaming for mercy:
- Plate loaded front squat (Hold a 10-25 pound plate out in front of you while squatting). x8
- Renegade Row 8 reps/side
- TRX Rollouts (or ab wheel) x10
- KB Swings x12
- Bodysaw x12
- Overhead Medball Slams x20
BONUS: Here is a Death Circuit I did three years ago with Eric Cressey. I promise my posture is much better now:
If you want some more of these, I highly recommend you check out Tony Gentilcore’s blog. He posts tons of circuits on there, and blogs about the latest Lord of the Rings convention. Enjoy and be safe. Have some other circuits or finishers you want to share? Post them in the comments section.
Mainstream Media: Stop Giving People Excuses
Here comes another gem from CBS Morning News and their, “CBS News Medical Correspondent.” A recent study came out recommending that middle age women should be exercising for one hour each day to keep from gaining weight. That is 60 minutes or 1/17th of your day if you get 7 hours of sleep each night. THAT IS LESS THAN 6% of your time spent awake!
So, of course the doctor is going to say that, “yes, you should exercise for 60 minutes each day…” NOPE… Not going to happen.
She explains that women should be eating better instead of exercising more. Sure, I can agree with eating better, but why not still encourage women to move more! Not just for weight loss, but to stay healthy. What about osteoporosis? Keeping a healthy heart rate and blood pressure in check? What about just for the sake of their mental health? I don’t know about you but I am in a much better mood after I train for an hour. And how about just keeping a baseline of strength so you can pick up bags of groceries or your kids.
One hour of activity can be doing a Yoga DVD for 30 minutes in the morning, then walking your dog for 30 minutes at night! Come on health professionals!
All we are doing is giving people MORE EXCUSES!!!
It’s All About Progression: Push Ups
Beginners make a lot of mistakes when they first start lifting and it isn’t their fault. They see a workout in FLEX or SHAPE magazine and just go at it. Then their form is poor, they are complaining of soreness, and they don’t see results. Why? Because they don’t use progressions. Why start with reverse lunges or body-weight squats when you could be doing back squats with German volume training that promises 100 lb increase in your 1RM in 3 months? Same think with push ups to benching. I don’t let any of my untrained athletes and clients bench until they have shown proficiency in the push up. I mean they should be able to do 15 body weight push ups before I put them under the bar. Dumbbells are another case, but hopefully you are picking up what I am dropping you.
The Push Up
The horizontal press is another one of those movements that people tend to progress to rapidly. Should you really be joining in with your buddies on Bench Monday if you can’t do 12 bodyweight push ups? Probably not. What about doing dips, dumbbell press variations, or dumbbell flys? Oh yeah, and that brings me to my next point, stay the hell away from machines unless you want to get into bodybuilding (and can eat and train for it) or have a specific reason for doing so (training for EXTREME hugging does not count, although I am all for it).
Now let’s talk about the push up a little more before we continue. Personally I think it is in the argument when you talk about the top three exercises you can do for optimal strength, performance, and overall health promotion. Just for discussion (in the comments) I believe the other two are the single legged squat (or lunge) and the pull up and its variations.
How to do a perfect push up
Keep these things in mind when performing the push up:
- Keep a straight line from the back of your head to your heels.
- Keep glutes tight (will help you keep that straight line
- Chin tucked
- Don’t lead with your head
- Hands shoulder width apart (or more) and under your shoulders (don’t have your hands past your face when you are on the ground.
- 45-70 degree angle at the armpit
- Bring chest all the way to the ground for proper scapular retraction
Phase 1:
- Elevated Push Up (hand elevated)
- If someone can not do push ups from the ground the best place to start is with their hands on a box or an elevated barbell in a rack. This way you can progress them by moving the bar in the rack closer to the ground or a shorter box.
Phase 2:
- Bodyweight Push Up
- You should be able to complete a minimum of 12 push ups correctly before moving on
Phase 3 (Where the Fun Begins):
- 1-Legged Push Ups (Great for core and shoulder stability, I am a big fan of this as the first progression after bodyweight push ups)
- T-Pusp Ups
- These are great for also addressing thoracic mobility as well.
- Feet Elevated Push Ups (12 inch box)
- Clap Push Up
Phase 4:
- Spiderman Push Up
- TRX Push Up
- TRX Atomic Push Up
- Slideboard Push Ups
- Valslide Push Ups
- Renegade Row
Spicing it Up
Now what if you have become a master of all of the push up variations and now you need more of a challenge that is where these come in play.
- Chains
- Band Resisted Push Ups
Now what are your favorite push up movements? I could go the rest of my lift just doing push ups… But I won’t… Because I love benching…
It’s All About Progressions: Core
Beginners make a lot of mistakes when they first start lifting and it isn’t their fault. They see a workout in FLEX or SHAPE magazine and just go at it. Then their form is poor, they are complaining of soreness, and they don’t see results. Why? Because they don’t use progressions. Why start with reverse lunges or body-weight squats when you could be doing back squats with German volume training that promises 100 lb increase in your 1RM in 3 months? Same think with push ups to benching. I don’t let any of my untrained athletes and clients bench until they have shown proficiency in the push up. I mean they should be able to do 15 body weight push ups before I put them under the bar. Dumbbells are another case, but hopefully you are picking up what I am dropping you.
The Plank
This post I want to focus on the plank, the most basic core stability exercises. I have a hierarchy of goals the athlete/client needs to meet before moving on to further progressions:
Phase 1
- 30 second front plank/15 second side plank (Per Side)
- Ability to do Pallof Presses properly in the tall kneeling position (weight will vary, I just want them to be able to stay tall and squeeze their glutes)
Phase 2
- 60 second Plank/30 second side plank (Per Side)
- Ability to do half-kneeling and standing Pallof Presses properly
- 12 kneeling rollouts on an exercise ball or TRX.
- Half Kneeling Cable Chops/Lifts
Phase 3
- 30 Second Feet elevated (FE) Plank (on 12″ box)/15 second FE Side Plank (per side)
- Ability to do 1 Legged Pallof Press
- Crawling Planks
- Rollout on Ab Wheel
- Landmines/Extreme Core Trainer
- Standing Cable Lifts
Phase 4
- Feet supported Side Plank
- Standing TRX Rollout
- Landmine/Extreme Core Trainer with Handles
- Band Resisted Rollouts
Phase 5
- Use your imagination
This is just what I go by and it can change based on other variables. But for the most part this is what you should go by for your own training and your clients.
