This article is part 3 in a four part series of articles to work on a home workout plan for people that want to drop fat and get fit (DFGF). Please keep in mind that if you wish to do any of these workouts in a gym then set the equipment up that you need before starting.
Remember before all workouts – to foam roll, do strengthening work for weak areas and dynamic stretch.
In this part I am going to outline five varied workouts and again as previously mentioned please consider the five workouts as a 7-14 day work block that should be done 1 through to 5 and NOT picking workouts from the previous two articles and mixing them in as we don’t want excessive repetition of similar movements.
One more point before I give you the workouts and that comes from a question I got on the program. The question was “The program looks great but why have you not got in any direct arm work e.g. biceps curls, triceps kickbacks etc or lots of core work, does this really work?” The simple answer is that when deciding on what movements give you the biggest bang for your buck when your primary goal is to DFGF then I am not going to incorporate exercises that do not deliver a big metabolic/fat burning hit. If lateral rasies using a can of beans or water bottle as some trainers suggest worked better than kettlebell swings, inverted rows, box hops, deadlifts etc I would use them but they don’t so focus on what has been proven to work. This is a point that must be at the forefront of your mind even if you are not going to be training at home as when many people train they spend an excessive amount of time doing exericses that have little to no effect on their overall goal e.g. the guy that wants to put on more muscle and get bigger spending 30mins pumping up his arms with three different biceps exericses yet does not deadlift or can’t even do a couple of pull ups! On the final part of the question – “does this really work”, well I have plenty of clients to show that yes it does work and if you are one of them post up your comments in the comment section to encourage others as to the benefits of short, intense workouts.
Even if you are a guy looking to get more muscular you will derive massive benefit from doing these workouts on your non-strength focused days. They will boost your conditioning and keep you lean while gaining the muscle you want so long as the diet stays in track. If you are a guy and want to know what and how to eat in order to get bigger, leaner and stronger then why haven’t you read my maximum muscle nutrition 101 article?
Dominic mid-swing on the kettlebells - metcons have helped me get fitter, stonger and faster
Ok back to the workouts –
Workout 1 – Snatch and Cindy. This workout will take you over 10mins but another great mix of a www.crossfit.com classic metcon (Crossfit Cindy) and a single arm dumbbell snatch.
Workout 2 – Kettlebell swing and box hop ladder. Use a small step/box for the hops and if a kid can do this one so can you!
Workout 3 – Squat, band pulls and mountain climbers. It’s really important that you get a good strong band as the band pulls are such a great upper back exercise to help pull your shoudlers back.
Workout 4 – 200 double unders. Another great reason to use skipping in your workouts and getting good at doing double unders is a great skill to master and one that does not come without much practice. Do 400-500 single skips if you do not have double unders yet. Those press ups take their toll after a few rounds!
Workout 5 – 60secs metcon. This is a 4mins work block in which you have the first 60secs to do as many squats as possible and then take the number you get away from 60 and do that number of pull ups or inverted rows with 60secs to complete all reps. While keeping the clock running do 60secs of press ups and again minus the number you get from 60 and do that number of pull ups or inverted rows. Rest for 1mins and repeat 3-4 times or do a 400m run between each 4mins round. Love this workout and its been a while since I did it myself and it’s on the cards for me very soon.
There are another five workouts to be done over a week or a even repeated twice over a month period. It really is important to remember that the people that are successful in all that they do, whether it be business, getting in great shape etc are that way because they have high standards to stick to. If your standard is to now look in the mirror and say “oh I’ll start the training and diet tomorrow because I just have too much on today, I’m too tired (insert excuse here)” then you will forever be reading another one of my articles that gives you all the tools to DFGF but never hold yourself up to a higher standard. This is the whole reason why I have a motivation section on my blog.
Have you given your all today or are you going to swim in a sea of your own excuses?
It would serve you well to have a read of the articles there as no one got in great shape by accident and no one got fat without overeating. Keep reminding yourself that if it’s got to be it’s up to me and raise your bloody standards!
I have been training clients for over 10years now and started my fitness career working as the fitness director for a large commercial gym. However, over the past 2-3 years I am working with an ever increasing number of clients that are moving away from the normal model of joining a gym becuase they –
A) Hate training in gyms
B) Can’t stand training in a gym where there is poor instruction and paying for services they never use i.e. squash, spa, showers etc
B) Want to set up a workout program at home
C) Want short 10-20mins workouts that they can do at home that deliver results (drop fat and get fit – DFGF)
In the past I would have liked all my clients to maintain a gym membership while training with me but as each month passes I am strongly encouraging all clients to stop their gym membership and set up a training system at home with minimal equipment. Do you really want to continue training in a gym that charges €500 plus per year when all you use are the dumbbells, some cardio piece and the showers? If your primary goal is to DFGF I know that using and of my effective weights programs at home with minimal equipment. lots of variety and incorparating movements that give you the biggest bang for your buck. We are NOT talking about doing home workout DVD’s, using super light bands and water bottles as resistance – that sort of approach will produce minimal results and we are looking for maximum results in less time to transform your body.
I'm sorry but she did not get in good shape lifting those tiny dumbbells and neither will you!!
I know the majority of clients that I deal with have the following targets –
1. To drop body fat
2. To increase fitness
3. To increase strength
4. To become more flexible and mobile
I do still deal a lot with guys that want to gain lean muscle (if you want to gain maximum muscle click on this article ) some top level athletes (I am back working with scholarship students in a top Dublin University again this month) and guys/girls that want to increase sports performance or take their fitness to the next level having already achieved a really good base. However, recognise that the majority of people want to GFDF and to be able to hit the goals above in as short a time as possible.
So if your primary goal is to drop fat, get fit, become more flexible/mobile, have more energy and to look and feel great then this series of articles is for you. If you are a top level trainer or athlete and need help in taking you to the next level and you are NOT doing everything that is listed then you really need to take a reality check as what I will lay out are the basics for you and the hard stuff for the average person. This can all be done at home or in a gym (I know you gym goers still need lots of help with proper training also) if you wish.
Program
Part 1 – In all sessions I do with clients I want to assess their range of motion in all joints to see where they have limitations as the last thing I want to do is try to put function on top of disfunction. For example, if a client presents with really tight hips, weak glutes and poor shoulder mobility it would be a really really bad idea to get him/her to do movements where they are showing further disfunction e.g. they squat and their knees keep falling inwards or lots of press ups or bench press for already tight shoudlers and pecs. Remember get your body to function properly and the movements recommended will be easier and put you at less risk of injury. The key here is to –
B) Foam roll tight areas – here is some videos on foam rolling various joints. Don’t get too bogged down in this, just have a root around using a ball or roller and get in and work hard on the tight spots. The general idea here is you want to increase tissue quality.
C) Strengthen weak areas – the most common issues I see are weak glutes and poor shoudler function. I can almost 100% guarantee if you are working at a desk or spending an hour plus per day driving then you need to start putting these movements into your program at the start of every session for 2-3mins.
Glute activation – pick one per session and rotate onto another in the following session. If you don’t have a band then get one asap
At the start of any of the workouts I recommend it’s vital that you do just 4-5mins of foam rolling and strengthening of weak areas as listed above before each session. Doing all of this prepares you properly for the session and again helps to improve tissue quality, mobility, strengthens commonly weak areas and prevents avoidable injuries.
From there I recommend doing some dynamic stretching. There are so many variations you can use here and this is my choice as it again focuses on all the main areas. Dynamic stretching video . The purpose of this is to increase body temperature, improve mobility and generally prepare the body for exercise.
The workout.
I have labeled on my youtube account (subscribe asapif you have not done so already) 20, yes 20 workouts that require minimal equipment and in the notes section of each video have listed how you can modify the movements if you do not have the equipment shown. However, I do think that if you are going to train from home then you MUST have the following –
A) Kettlebell (10-12kg for women, 20-24kg for men) is vital as you can use if for so many exercises. I do not recommend dumbbells as a first purchase as they take up too much space and are not essential kit. Order your kettlebell directly from me (which is cheaper) or order direct from http://www.buykettlebelldublin.com/
The great Lance Armstrong uses kettlebells in his home workouts and so should you
B) Foam roll, lacrosse ball and band – I have done an article on these essential pieces already here
C) a skipping rope – you can pick up one anywhere and really easy to get used to with some practice
D) A good mat – a good yoga mat will work fine
E) Non-essential kit – a TRX or Rings, Swiss ball and gliders/val slides. These are not essential but in time are worth buying so long as you have the space and will use them
This is a four part article so in this part I will cover 5 workouts that can be done in around 10-20mins or less. The goal here is to use short, intense, full body workouts to really ramp up the heart rate, increase strength and thus help burn fat and increase fitness. These are metcon (metabolic conditioning) type sessions that I have used in combination with strength focused sessions to successfully to help my clients strip away fat and boost energy levels.
Please remember to record and track the time each session takes or rounds completed so you can use them as a marker of improved performance. It’s like I always say, if performance is improving then you will look and feel better, but without increased performance nothing improves. These workouts are primarily aimed at the DFGF client as again many many people have this as a goal and need the structure on how to go about doing this.
I recommend doing the following five workouts over a 10-14 day period for beginners or over a 7-8 day period for those that have been working with weights already. The five workouts chosen have been picked as there is not too much repetition of the same movements e.g. not doing kettlebell swings or press ups in each session. If you are unsure of the movements then you really need to book in for a one-to-one session with me so you can start making rapid progress on programs that get results in less time.
Workout 1 – Overhead lunge and Burpee session. Use no added weight on the lunges at first and swap press ups for burpees if you are really struggling on the burpees.
Workout 2 – Kettlebell swing and skipping ladder. As demonstrated by a client of mine that does lots of home workouts.
Workout 3 – Crossfit Cindy (www.crossfit.com, www.crossfit.ie ). One of the best basic and highly effective workouts you can do. Start with 10mins, then 15mins and ideally a 20mins Crossfit Cindy for 15+ rounds is a great target
Workout 4 – Run and 3mins AMRAP (as many rounds as possible). If you can’t run then walk/jog the 400m!
Workout 5 – Deadlift and inverted row workout. You can simply deadlift your kettlebell or a single heavy dumbbell instead of the barbell deadlift if you do not have the weights. Just place the weight between the legs, squat to pick it up, stand, lower the weight and repeat. One arm rows instead of the inverted rows if you don’t have a TRX or rings to do the rows.
So there you have it. Five simple yet highly effective workouts that can be done with little or no equipment from home or in a gym if you still want to maintain your membership. I would also combine one of these workouts with some strength work e.g. pull ups, step ups, split squats, core work etc with my one-to-one clients but when you are stuck for time and want short, effective workouts then the above sessions should be your first choice.
If you are unsure on how to do many of the movements mentioned then I now suggest you book in for a one-to-one session asap as these exercises are really going to help transform your body and for some people that were previously doing lots of cardio to help them look betterm, this is going to deliver results faster and in less time.
Some of you that are reading this may have already done the workouts listed so here is your opportunity to get reminded on what actually works when your primary goal is DFGF. Also, it’s a great reason to now pass this article on to those you know would benefit from this info or NEED this info in one complete article. There is of course one caveat and that is none of this is going to make a massive difference to your body if you do not keep your diet on track. For that you need to read and watch my Fat Loss 101 article – it’s still one of the most read articles each month I have ever written.
In part 2 I will plan out five more metcons/10-20mins workouts that deliver results fast and give you another block of 7-14 days of constantly varied workouts and to build on my plan to give you 20 different workouts that build into the ultimate fat burning, muscle toning training plan.
Pretty much every session I do with clients have a big emphasis on getting stronger. If you want to get in amazing shape you must must must get stronger. There is zero point in moaning about belly fat, chest definition or any area you feel you need more work in when you can’t do the basics well and are not constantly focused on getting a little bit stronger week on week, month on month.
For you to even ask the question – “I hate my fat stomach what exercises do I need to do?”, tells me so so much about your level of understanding of both training and nutrition. You see I have delt with lots of clients that want or wanted to get lean, fit and defined yet would not man or woman up to getting stronger so instead they went back to lifting the same weights, doing more cardio and then making half assed attempts on their diet. The end result is that they go around in circles looking for another method when the obvious one was staring them in the face – get bloody stronger, stop kidding yourself on your diet as it’s no where near as good as it needs to be and get your heart rate up from time to time.
These are the same people that when asked what training they are following they reply with – well I don’t really use a proper program as such or they are using a very complicated program with bugger all intensity. When a guy or girl comes to me and they can’t do full length press ups for 10-20reps, pull ups for even just 5+ reps (guys) inverted rows for 10+ reps (girls), squat well, deadlift with good form etc my response is always going to be – well what do you expect when you can’t do the basics.
For example, last week I did a deadlift workout with a sandbag carry pulling 145kg for 51 reps and a carrying a weight up and down the gym a few times all in under 10mins. Whether you are a guy or a girl you have to understand the kind of work that is involved in doing that.
To be honest if I got the vast majority of typical gym goers to put my weights away after that session it would be a tough workout for them! I mean when you see people in gyms faffing about with light dumbbells, lots of cardio, doing excessive amouns of biceps curls, bench press and core work it makes me think – could they even be strong enough to carry a bunch of 20kg plates back across the gym floor and do this safely without hurting their back?
Get stronger pleeeease
I no longer work in a typical gym and so at times I forget that people don’t follow set programs, don’t get any stronger, get shit#y guidance and generally train with less intensity than they display dancing at a wedding! For me it’s the norm to have guys and girls pulling well over body weight deadlifts, squatting well, banging out pull ups, chucking a kettlbell around, sprinting up and down a road and just generally going at it hard. I love it when I see my clients evolve from a body that is soft and flacid to one that is tight, toned and for then to stare at their reflection in the mirror and know they have worked their butt off to look that good.
If you really want to be in great shape you must get stonger and there are three ways you can do that –
1. Mental – watch any video of anyone that is in great shape and they is absolutely no question they they have supreme mental toughness. I believe this is NOT something that you are born with. Yes some can have better genetics than others but there are lots of examples of people that were brilliant at a junior level but let it all slide as they got older. I mean so what if you were great at rugby when you were 18yrs old. You are now possibly older, fatter, couldn’t run for a bus and please stop talking about your past like you were some kind of star. People only care about the impression you are making now.
Getting in superb shape requires that ability to turn off the part of your brain that says STOP when the going gets tough. This is something that clients of mine learn in every single group session as they do. When they see others around them pushing hard and keeping it going it makes them realise that they can too. It is a skill I have learned and still learn in all of my workouts and it is not something I have done on my own. I needed someone to tell me I could do one more rep, round etc.
If you want to become mentally tougher for your sessions then simply tell yourself to do one more rep when the going gets tough, set a target on what you want to achieve, train with others, watch something motivating before hand or simply get in there and attack the session. Without exception the people I know and train that have and will get in great shape are mentally tough and come back for more every time. You are not going to get stronger because you put in one really tough session, you need to be able to do that over and over again. I have stayed in great shape and continue to gain strength because I am more consistent than you are and I love the challenge. So get mentally tough if you want to build more strength.
I am a massive fan of Female top level crossfitter Miranda Oldroyd and in this video just look at the section from 1mins to 1.30mins – THAT is showing mental toughness, concentration and dedication.
2. Pyhsical – No surprise here really as if you are to build more strength you must lift progressively heavier weights. You are a guy that would love to add 1-2stone of muscle to his frame? Well let me tell you that you aint never going to get there if you keep returning to your sessions lifting the same weights week in week out and you are avoiding the big compound movements like the squat, deadlift, pull up, bench, overhead press etc
I have lost count the number of skinny guys I have spoken to that could tell you the in’s and out’s of every supplement yet have rubbish numbers i.e. they don’t even deadlift, use the leg press all the time and have an ‘arms day’ when training. Come on guys, I have never seen a lean guy pull a double body weight deadlift and not look impressive!
I couldn’t care what program you use to get stronger. Use my programs, use
“Oh, I know, everyone is an expert on weight gain. The Internet is flooded with 145 pound skinny-fat experts.
Here’s a summary of their mass-gaining methods: Stick a bunch of big words together in a row, or pull out a thesaurus and just jam synonyms into every sentence. Bam! Your audience will instantly grow bigger.”
There are any number of ways to gain strength but the rule should be always keep it simple, add weight slowly, change the exercises, reps, sets up every few weeks and finally STICK TO THE DAM PROGRAM. Do not or stop being a program hopper, stick to the program for a good 6-12 months and you will get strong.
Train with others or read up on people that you admire. It’s like the great Dave Tate said –
“That’s why there’s so few people who are doing this shit and why it helps to be around people with similar goals. They understand. It’s a rare breed, man”.
3. Technique – it amazes me the number for people that want to get stronger yet have never and I mean never had someone look at their form while lifting. Some people will spend hundreds of euro on gym membership fees, gym clothing, equipment etc yet waste increased strength potential because they won’t go to see somone that actually knows what they are talking about.
I was asked this week by the sales team in a gym I was a member of as to why I did not rejoin their massive, €800+ per year facility and the primary reason was being sick to the stomach seeing people all around me lift weights and train with such bad form or structure while their trainers looked on.
You can add a massive amount of strength by simply fixing simple aspects of any lift. At the very least you should video yourself doing the big compound lifts every now and again and learn to recognise good and bad form.
For example, the guys I work with in www.crossfit.ie have been putting together a great collection of videos on lifting form so have a look back over the workout section of the site for tips on the major lifts. This one is on the overhead squat –
The message is simple really you are either getting stronger or you are getting weaker. I am as proud of my female 50 something clients pulling a 40kg deadlift as I am of my male clients doing a double body weight deadlift but overall they all know they must lift heavy stuff with good form, put in the effort and repeat.
Lift, lower, repeat
Please work on this or forever be ignorant to what acutally works. I love this video by the founder of Crossfit Greg Glassman to emphasise invincible ignornace.
Just a quick note to say that my home page site was down over the past few days and is back up again BUT this blog was always running fine so remember to bookmark it or add to your favourites so you do not have to go through my home page to get here.
For the next two weeks my own workouts will consist of double metcons (two workouts per day) in preperation for the up coming crossfit invite on saturday the 22nd May.
I will be mainly following the http://crossfit.ie/workouts/ workouts during this time as they will be setting the workouts for the competition so it’s best to stick to their programming as it will best prepare me. During this time it makes no real sense to do any heavy sessions focusing on increasing strength as now is not the time to worry about not being strong enough as big gains in strength will not happen in just two weeks. The focus is on getting used to doing 2-3 workouts per day and more importantly RECOVERY!!
Hang power cleans in action
Recovery is massively overlooked by so many as there is no point in being able to put in 3-7 workouts for one week and then being so shattered you can’t train the following week. With that in mind please have a re-read of my article on increasing recovery if you want to know what I will be doing – https://thetransformationcatalyst.wordpress.com/2010/04/11/5-ways-to-faster-workout-recovery/
So yesterday I did the ring dips 5reps and overhead squat (45kg) 10reps as many rounds as possible in 10mins. I really had to work on my overhead squats and found it took me 2-3 rounds to get in a groove. I use a new olympic bar that was ripping my hands so that kind of made it harder. I ended up getting 10 rounds in 10mins which I was happy with but 10mins later I was running on empty for the second workout (500m row, 30 burpees and 15 chest to bar pull ups – 4.36mins).
Here is the last 5 rounds of the dip/OH squat wod –
Forgot to add one I did a week ago and one I did yesterday.
The one I did a week ago I really enjoyed and it was as follows –
3reps at body weight front squat
6 ring dips (I did normal dips with 20kg extra to make up for lack of rings)
9 knees to elbows
all done for 10 YES 10 rounds as quick as possible.
Yes this girl is possibly front squatting what you can do! Get going on the front squats and work your shoulder flexibility
i finished it in a slow enough 16.16mins but I was doing it in a big gym at at times had to wait for certain pieces. Nice workout and the front squats get quite hard after about the 5th round.
Second one was from www.crossfit.com main site some time ago and was –
60kg deadlift 15reps
Press ups 15reps
All done for 10 rounds.
I really pushed for a sub 10mins on this but missed it with a 10.10mins. I did not push hard enough early and was always trying to make up time later on. A mistake I often make and need to correct. I did the first 5 rounds in 4.50mins but really need to do it in about sub 4.30mins to account for the slowing down on the press ups later on. Please remember a press up is NOT a press up unless your chest touches the floor or step if you guys/girls are using a step.
This workout is similar (but not quite) to the WOD in the video below and another one you could try.
Again quick, tough and fun workouts and I did some strength stuff first then hit these hard.
Feeling good I was today (nice coffee before the session helped) so I did this workout before my first clients of the day.
Start with a 2km run (obviously as quick as possible)
Move quickly on to bench press and do 100reps with a weight that is 2/3 of your body weight. if this seems too much then scale to 1/2 body weight or even press ups (which i did with a female client of mine no problem).
The trick here is that you must do 15 squats for every break you have to take – easy enough to spot on the bench press but make sure you are honest is doing press ups (chest MUST touch the floor).
oh and then finish with another 2km run!
Simple and easy to do from home or with very limited equipment. Guaranteed mega calorie burn and the chest muscles will certainly feel it the next day.
Mine was a 8.30min on first 2km and 7.58mins on last 2km and 28.40mins total time. Looks simple enough on paper so go give it a try pleeeease.
I have been taking lots of video of clients recently and was just too busy to post it so I got a few mins spare this evening to post up a few and hope it inspires you.
I am always banging on about the importance of getting stronger if you want to look and feel your very best so here are a number of videos showing some of my female clients in action. It’s great to see the girls lifting well as it not only shows other women who may be reluctant to use heavier weights what they should aspire to but it sreams at the guys “the girl is stronger than you so stop being so bloody lazy!”
First up is the amazing Brenda deadlifting 62.5kg (i actually think it was 65kg!) and with near perfect form while making it look easy.
Note the back is straight and hips/shoulders moving at same speed.
Next up is the always up for a challenge Grainne. Here grainne needs to work on a tighter arch in the lower back as she is using the lower back to do too much of the work. Note how she drives the hips up too early and uses more of a ‘grip it and rip’ it approach! Now she is plenty strong but just needs to work the form more to ensure she does not injure herself and we discussed this at length – the whole reason why I video clients so much.
Nest up is the returning Aisling (I have not seen her for a few weeks so she was back for a new program) who pulls a 40kg deadlift in her first ever attempt. This is a really good start and I use steps to deadlift from as the 10kg plates are too small and do not want her deadlifting too low as I find that when people do this they tend to lose the arch in the lower back and that opens up the chance of injury.
She then goes on to hit a few pull ups which she has been able to do for a while now and that alone is impressive in itself.
All the girls train hard, they do not spend endless hours in the gym, maintain a good diet (at times not great but mostly good) and as you can see are all in great shape and feel super.
My job as a trainer is to progress them on through their training so they get stronger and fitter. The drop in body fat that they all wanted or still want will come as a direct result of the quality of their diet and the quality of their training. Are deadlifts important – you better believe it! So use good form and its a skill you will use for the rest of your life. They do not leave their program design to chance and kind of do what comes to mind and neither should you if you want to look and feel your best.
deadlifting is used daily
Hope the girls show you what it means to train with weights properly and why if you are wondering your weights program is not delivering results its quite possible the effort is not being put in or the program is not worth the paper its written on in the first place.
From time to time I get emails from prospective clients on getting in better shape and dropping body fat. Invariably the mail will end with ‘but i do not want to get tooooo big’.
When I do start working with the client I may have to ease their notion that by lifting heavier weights they will not get huge. Obviously this question is more common in women but what guys forget is that in order to look amazing you actually have to get bloody stronger. Week in week out the gyms I train in are filled with guys and girls lifting weights that are way below their potential, lifting with poor form and mostly doing exercises that do not give them much bang for their buck. For example, which exercise is going to have a more beneficial effect on your body – a few sets of biceps curls or a few sets of chin ups. Are the chin ups going to work more muscle than biceps curls – YES.
On the technique front, I was in a gym last week doing a few overhead squats (up to 70kg now for reps so its going ok) when the guy beside me was doing deadlifts. I admired the fact that he was doing deadlifts but it was with such poor form that I just had to stop him. On my first comment on his poor form he actually responded with “but it’s just my warm ups”. Well then warm up properly man. After some correction he was lifting much better and if he maintains the advice given he will not hurt his back doing a massively beneficial exercise. The really funny thing was that the guy on the other side of me was also doing deadlifts with even worse form – think of the hunchback of notre dame and he was a trainer in the gym! I did not correct him.
Deadlift help needed!
This is why when the average person attends a gym they tend to get a cookie cutter program i.e. the same program everyone gets. A client told me today that her mum went to a gym for the first time recently and the program given involved over 10 different machines and that was just the weights part of the feckin program. Simplify people.
Overall, if you want to get fitter, drop body fat and look/feel your best then you most certainly have to get stronger and this goes for all exercises and in particular exercises like pull ups, inverted rows, press ups, deadlifts, squats, lunges, overhead presses, squats, olympic lifts etc
Please have a look back at some of my videos of any of my clients lifting really well with decent weights. Note that the girls and guys do not look MASSIVE yet are in very good shape. So do not moan about flabby arms, stomach etc if you have not gotten any stronger recently. By getting stronger not only will you increase muscle tone but your energy will increase, your metabolism will increase, you will drop more body fat, have better control of sugar levels and overall have a better quality of life. All of this becomes more important as you get older as you will lose muscle as you get older unless you weight train. Keep preserving your muscle and this will give you a better quality of life every single day.
Finally, I will finish with a video of my good self doing deadlifts using 190kg on a final set for 5reps. This is over twice my bodyweight and although I do not consider this amazing but I do think that any guy who wants to look his best needs to be hitting double bodyweight deadlifts. For a woman a bodyweight deadlift is a good standard. Remember if you are not getting stronger on the basic exercises then please do not expect to get in better shape.
On the 27th December the great Dan John came to town and set up camp at the excellent (but bloody freezing) gym Informed Performance on the north side of Dublin.
I have been meaning to get this up for ages but the holidays and clients wanting to get their new year off to a good start has delayed me. So sorry for all those that were expecting this sooner.
Prior to going to the seminar (it was on for 2 days but could only attend the first) I was a big fan of Dan John and had read his excellent book – Never let Go http://www.davedraper.com/fitness_products/product/BDJN.html and one of his DVD’s – Everthing’s over my head. Both of which were quite good and he reminds me very much of the writers from Hardgainer which were such (and still are) a strong influence on my training philosophy i.e. work on the basics regularly and get stronger.
So to get the ball rolling he started off on his philosophy of strength (well after he showed us how to improve your standing broad jump instantly – snap your hips and stop using your thigh so much and kettlebell swings).
1. Reps – if you want to get good at anything you need to do it over and over again. I think Malcom Gladwell put it best in his book The Outliers http://www.gladwell.com/outliers/index.html when he presents his theory of what makes successful people and it largely comes down to putting in your 10,000hrs of practice.
For example, if you play a sport or simply just want to look better Dan suggests you ask yourself what are the three most important things you need to work on? So is spending 20mins doing stomach exercises really going to matter when you are 2stone overweight or could that time be spent more wisely? If you play ANY sport are those biceps curls going to make you run any faster/powerful or move with more mobility? It frequently amazes me how many guys train like bodybuilders doing pretty boy training when they NEED better performance. Get practicing and remember it takes 20 years to become an overnight success.
2. Talk about movements not muscles – this relates to the above point and Dan spoke about the importance of having exercises that focus on push/pull, posterior chain, squat, explosive movements, one leg/hand, anterior chain and gait (e.g. holding a weight overhead and walking) in every training program. Funny how the majority of programs I see people do in gym or those given out by trainers are mainly machine or body part split programs – so 10 years ago!
Importance of explosive exercises
3. If it’s important do it every day – and if it’s not do not do it at all. For me I need lots of work on my olympic lifting so I do it most days of the week in some form. For others this might mean you need to keep your diet on track daily and train regularly. Stop doing things that do not matter.
4. The body is one piece – again getting back to training the body as a unit and NOT certain parts. Doing some isolation work in a training program can help. However, the majority of people work on specific areas too much which can lead to injuries and sub-optimal results. I have trained clients for years with full body training in almost all sessions with great results. This might be something you are missing from your training.
5. Pick things up – Dan explained the importance of just basically picking things up and putting them down e.g. the deadlift. These basic exercises give you much more bang for your buck when done correctly than using machines in a gym.
6. Put things over your head – Dan said that this is the primary area most people fall down on. Just put a weight over your head and walk with it. Not only will it help with core and shoulder stability but will get your hear rate up and improve your conditioning. Try a set of walking lunges with a dumbbell held overhead and tell me it does not work!
Walking lunges with weight OH
From there Dan made some other good points like – if you only had 15mins to train what would you do? This is a super question as it is something I preach all the time as I tell clients there is lots you can get done in just 15mins with the right exercises and a bit of determination. So if you had just 15mins would a leg exercise feature – YES! Pressing moevements like a standing press or push up – YES! A power clean, kettlebell swings or wall ball maybe – YES!
This is an example of what can be done in very short time –
or
From there me moved into quite a few great exercies to use for warming up such as –
Goblet squats, push up variations, walking with kettlebell overhead and this one i really liked
It’s kind of sad the way most people warm up and if you were just to do a few of these, a dynamic warm up and foam rolling then within 5mins you would be more than ready to rock and roll!
Oh we did these for core work also (and the turkish get up) –
From there we took a break and I did a workout (crossfit the chief variation) and some deadlifts (worked up to an easy single at 190kg) – all completed in just 30mins. Again showing that time is not a limit for getting in productive training. I must say that Dan had his eye on me when I was doing my power cleans and did a super job of correcting my hip strike on it later in the seminar.
After the break we went into teaching the olympic lift the snatch and here is the great man in action again –
And here –
and here –
We then went into the clean where he corrected my form and in the process showed when and where we should be pulling from on this exercise.
Overall it was a great day and I would urge you to get to one of his seminars asap. A big thanks has to go to Informed Performance for getting him over.
It was great to learn from a guy who is at the top of his game, a great speaker and very welcoming to everyone at every level of fitness and strength. I for one know that 2010 will be a more productive year for me and my clients having attended this seminar.
My lessons learned and just general observations were –
1. You can’t train if you are injured so stop neglecting your flexibility and weak areas.
2. More good fats will speed up recovery time and will get you leaner quicker.
3. Crossfit workouts will help in all aspects of your training and conditioning so stop sitting in the fence and go do a cindy and modify if needed
4. If i was to do it all again i would have learned the olympic lifts sooner in life
5. There are lots of people that talk a big game but can’t back it up when it comes down to it – listen to those that have put time in under the bar, have the scars to prove it and have learned from their mistakes.
6. The importance of glute work and glute flexibility is vital for progressive leg work without getting injuries
More glute/lower back work please –
7. All the skinny guys that promise you they are eating lots are full of sh1t and need to sit down and feckin eat big. All the clients that tell me they eat really well but are still overweight are not following the plan i gave them and cheat too often.
8. Girls – if you cant easily do press ups, inverted rows, lunges, dips and straight leg deadlifts with at least 40kg then please stop moaning about your big ass, flabby belly and bingo wings. Get with the program please and get really good at those moves
9. Guys – you are not leaner and more defined because your diet is not tight enough and you will not work on your poor conditioning (get your heart rate up every session please). You are not bigger and stronger because you are still following a program with a chest day, back day etc and refuse to do deadlifts, squats, lunges etc really hard or you simply are not just working hard period. Oh and i know what you are all about by the first thing you do in the gym and if its bench press (where is your shoulder pre-hab work first) or biceps curls (are you ****t1ing me – you are STARTING a session with biceps curls and you wonder why your arms are not bigger/more defined) you really need a reality check.
10. I have said it a long time by now – nothing will do more for recovery/injury prevention than foam rolling in many forms.
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