Our clients have been working extra hard lately, and Kym finally decided to take a vacation with her mom and children to Disney World for the week – so we decided to do something completely different this week.

Instead of our normal interval based workouts, we are doing several different kinds of Yoga this week at our personal training studio.  Monday is going to be Flexibility Yoga Day, Wednesday is going Strength Yoga Day, and Friday will be a good mixture and more of a Flow Yoga Day.

Here are our 3 Yoga Rules for the Week:

1. No Pain  2. Stay Tall  3. BREATHE

(the 2/5 is just how many breaths to hold each yoga pose)

Nearly everyone can use a little extra flexibility and stress relief, and Yoga is just what the Doctor ordered (if he has any sense that is!)

Innovative Exercises from Iron Man 2

Kettle bells: A cannon ball with a handle! Kettle bells are now common in the U.S., beating out traditional dumbbells. Kettle bells allow for swing movements not possible with dumbbells. That movement uses more muscle groups and yields better results in less time.

Sledgehammers: Downey beat truck tires with a sledgehammer, swinging from the side and overhead. The sledgehammers ranged in weight from four pounds up to 20 pounds. The sledgehammer workout targets the back and shoulders.

Indian Clubs: Indian clubs were a popular exercise in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Club swinging was introduced as an exercise in England by soldiers stationed in India in the 1800s. The clubs range in size and weight. They are swung in patterns of movement. The exercise focuses on shoulders and arms. It’s also gentle on joints because of its rotational movement.

Wheelbarrows: Bose created a custom-built wheelbarrow so that it could carry 650 pounds. Downey Jr. pushed it around a figure-eight-formation obstacle course. It’s a killer compound exercise which targets chest, shoulders and back.

Sleds: This full-body exercise required Downey to pull, run, and pull again. A sprinter’s sled was filled with 50-pound weights. That sled was tied to the end of a 50-foot rope. Like something out of Rocky IV, Downey would pull the sled to him, drop it, and sprint 50 feet away from it. Then he’d turn and pull it back to him… and run 50-feet away again… This routine targets almost everything: arms, torso, abs, core, and legs.

Fire Hoses: Bose filled two fire hoses: one with sand; the other with water. Then Downey would do semi squats while dragging and whipping the hoses up and down. This exercise builds shoulders and chest.

Bamboo Bars: Bose loaded up bamboo bars with rubber bands; then he attached kettle bells to the rubber bands. The experiment created a bouncy, hard-to-stabilize barbell.

Completely.

When I was young I had no sense of myself. All I was, was a product of all the fear and humiliation I suffered. Fear of my parents. The humiliation of teachers calling me “garbage can” and telling me I’d be mowing lawns for a living. And the very real terror of my fellow students.

I was threatened and beaten up for the color of my skin and my size. I was skinny and clumsy, and when others would tease me I didn’t run home crying, wondering why. I knew all too well. I was there to be antagonized. In sports I was laughed at. A spaz. I was pretty good at boxing but only because the rage that filled my every waking moment made me wild and unpredictable. I fought with some strange fury. The other boys thought I was crazy.

I hated myself all the time.

As stupid at it seems now, I wanted to talk like them, dress like them, carry myself with the ease of knowing that I wasn’t going to get pounded in the hallway between classes. Years passed and I learned to keep it all inside. I only talked to a few boys in my grade. Other losers. Some of them are to this day the greatest people I have ever known.

Hang out with a guy who has had his head flushed down a toilet a few times, treat him with respect, and you’ll find a faithful friend forever. But even with friends, school sucked. Teachers gave me hard time. I didn’t think much of them either.

Then came Mr. Pepperman, my advisor. He was a powerfully built Vietnam veteran, and he was scary. No one ever talked out of turn in his class. Once one kid did and Mr. P. lifted him off the ground and pinned him to the blackboard. Mr. P. could see that I was in bad shape, and one Friday in October he asked me if I had ever worked out with weights. I told him no. He told me that I was going to take some of the money that I had saved and buy a hundred-pound set of weights at Sears.

As I left his office, I started to think of things I would say to him on Monday when he asked about the weights that I was not going to buy. Still, it made me feel special. My father never really got that close to caring. On Saturday I bought the weights, but I couldn’t even drag them to my mom’s car. An attendant laughed at me as he put them on a dolly.

Monday came and I was called into Mr. P.’s office after school. He said that he was going to show me how to work out. He was going to put me on a program and start hitting me in the solar plexus in the hallway when I wasn’t looking. When I could take the punch we would know that we were getting somewhere. At no time was I to look at myself in the mirror or tell anyone at school what I was doing. In the gym he showed me ten basic exercises. I paid more attention than I ever did in any of my classes. I didn’t want to blow it. I went home that night and started right in.

Weeks passed, and every once in a while Mr. P. would give me a shot and drop me in the hallway, sending my books flying. The other students didn’t know what to think. More weeks passed, and I was steadily adding new weights to the bar.

I could sense the power inside my body growing. I could feel it.

Right before Christmas break I was walking to class, and from out of nowhere Mr. Pepperman appeared and gave me a shot in the chest. I laughed and kept going. He said I could look at myself now. I got home and ran to the bathroom and pulled off my shirt. I saw a body, not just the shell that housed my stomach and my heart. My biceps bulged. My chest had definition.

I felt strong. It was the first time I can remember having a sense of myself. I had done something and no one could ever take it away. You couldn’t say shit to me.

It took me years to fully appreciate the value of the lessons I have learned from the Iron. I used to think that it was my adversary, that I was trying to lift that which does not want to be lifted. I was wrong. When the Iron doesn’t want to come off the mat, it’s the kindest thing it can do for you. If it flew up and went through the ceiling, it wouldn’t teach you anything.

That’s the way the Iron talks to you. It tells you that the material you work with is that which you will come to resemble. That which you work against will always work against you.

It wasn’t until my late twenties that I learned that by working out I had given myself a great gift. I learned that nothing good comes without work and a certain amount of pain. When I finish a set that leaves me shaking, I know more about myself. When something gets bad, I know it can’t be as bad as that workout.

I used to fight the pain, but recently this became clear to me: pain is not my enemy; it is my call to greatness. But when dealing with the Iron, one must be careful to interpret the pain correctly. Most injuries involving the Iron come from ego. I once spent a few weeks lifting weight that my body wasn’t ready for and spent a few months not picking up anything heavier than a fork. Try to lift what you’re not prepared to and the Iron will teach you a little lesson in restraint and self-control.

I have never met a truly strong person who didn’t have self-respect.

I think a lot of inwardly and outwardly directed contempt passes itself off as self-respect: the idea of raising yourself by stepping on someone’s shoulders instead of doing it yourself. When I see guys working out for cosmetic reasons, I see vanity exposing them in the worst way, as cartoon characters, billboards for imbalance and insecurity.

Strength reveals itself through character. It is the difference between bouncers who get off strong-arming people and Mr. Pepperman.

Muscle mass does not always equal strength. Strength is kindness and sensitivity. Strength is understanding that your power is both physical and emotional. That it comes from the body and the mind. And the heart.

Yukio Mishima said that he could not entertain the idea of romance if he was not strong. Romance is such a strong and overwhelming passion, a weakened body cannot sustain it for long. I have some of my most romantic thoughts when I am with the Iron. Once I was in love with a woman. I thought about her the most when the pain from a workout was racing through my body.

Everything in me wanted her. So much so that sex was only a fraction of my total desire. It was the single most intense love I have ever felt, but she lived far away and I didn’t see her very often. Working out was a healthy way of dealing with the loneliness. To this day, when I work out I usually listen to ballads.

I prefer to work out alone. It enables me to concentrate on the lessons that the Iron has for me. Learning about what you’re made of is always time well spent, and I have found no better teacher.

The Iron had taught me how to live. Life is capable of driving you out of your mind. The way it all comes down these days, it’s some kind of miracle if you’re not insane. People have become separated from their bodies. They are no longer whole.

I see them move from their offices to their cars and on to their suburban homes. They stress out constantly, they lose sleep, they eat badly. And they behave badly. Their egos run wild; they become motivated by that which will eventually give them a massive stroke. They need the Iron Mind.

Through the years, I have combined meditation, action, and the Iron into a single strength. I believe that when the body is strong, the mind thinks strong thoughts. Time spent away from the Iron makes my mind degenerate. I wallow in a thick depression. My body shuts down my mind.

The Iron is the best antidepressant I have ever found. There is no better way to fight weakness than with strength. Once the mind and body have been awakened to their true potential, it’s impossible to turn back.

The Iron never lies to you. You can walk outside and listen to all kinds of talk, get told that you’re a god or a total bastard. The Iron will always kick you the real deal. The Iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black.

I have found the Iron to be my greatest friend. It never freaks out on me, never runs. Friends may come and go. But two hundred pounds is always two hundred pounds.

- Henry Rollins-

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I just HAD to share this here.  One of the best articles about real strength I have ever seen.

This is what we strive for at Barbarian Strength Gym (minus the ballads though =)

I am going to end with another quote:

Be yourself; everyone else is already taken. – Oscar Wilde

You literally have the power to naturally “staple your stomach” so that you get the feeling of being fuller faster.

It all begins by eating smaller portions of food throughout the day. Since you are eating every 3 hours there is no longer a need to consume a massive meal at any point during the day in hopes that it will carry you for a long period of time.

I want you to cup your hands together as if you are trying to scoop up water out of a pool. Look at the size of your cupped hands. That is a close approximation of the amount of food you should be consuming at each meal. It may not seam like much, but remember, you will be eating again and keeping your energy levels and metabolism boosted every 3 hours. If you want a smaller stomach you need to put less food in it at each meal. That way, it will naturally shrink due to the fact it no longer needs to be expanded to accommodate large, heavy meals.

You will be amazed at how this technique works!

Step 2

Walk the Plank!

Here is a really cool variation of the plank exercise from Yoga.  Never satisfied with leaving good enough alone (what fun would that be =) I have modified the core plank into a total body fat burning exercise.

Check this out!

Yes it is hard, Yes we are crazy, But we have more Fun with our Personal Training!

The plank exercise works not only your abs, obliques, lower back, glutes and dozens of other “surface muscles”, but also works the Transverse Abdominis. The TA is literally a “natural corset” that pulls your belly in. Think about sucking in your stomach, now imagine if your body would do that all the time naturally!

Not only that, but if done correctly this exercise really helps with reducing back pain.  Overall one of my favorite total body strengthening exercises.

Perform Better has all kinds of fitness goodies that any fitness nut would love – here are some suggestions.

Fitness Bands

Simply one of the most useful products ever.  The 1/2 inch and 1 inch will be the most useful for Most people.  I use these all the time instead of cables – awesome stuff.

Jungle Gym and TRX
Body Weight Training Rules! With these tools you can put your whole gym in your gym bag and take it with you. The Jungle Gyms are awesome for personal use, but if you want the Best pick up the TRX. It has special loops for your feet which multiply your exercise options endlessly. Andy strong enough to pull a bus! (yes, I HAVE tested that =)

Foam Rollers and Massage Sticks
Know what to do with sore muscles? How about self massage – cool toys I use all the time.
For those who don’t want hardcore, use the first softer ones. If you are an extreme athlete or much over 200 use the second which is reinforced with a pvc pipe. And “the stick” is awesome for hitting detail point on yourself and personal training clients.

Other cool ideas include kettlebells, bosu and exercise balls, and fitness books and dvd’s.

http://www.performbetter.com?kbid=2655

I hope this helps you solve some of your Holiday Shopping woes =)

You can get a pretty good idea of your fitness level with the following quick self-assessment test.

I read about it several years ago in one of Dr. Sears’s newsletters. And I still refer to it today.

1. How many push-ups can you do? (a) more than 40, (b) between 10 and 40, (c) 10 or less

2. How many chin-ups can you do? (a) more than 12, (b) between 5 and 12, or (c) 5 or less

3. How long can you hold your breath? (a) more than 1 minute, (b) 30 seconds to 2 minutes, or (c) less than 30 seconds

4. What is your resting heart rate (measured in beats per minute)? (a) less than 60 bpm, (b) 60 to 75 bpm, or (c) more than 75 bpm

5. How far can you reach down when bending at the waist? (a) hands flat on the floor, (b) to your toes, or (c) to your knees

6. Stand on one foot, close your eyes, tilt your head back, and touch your nose. How well did you maintain your balance? (a) no problem, (b) a little unsteady, or (c) began to fall

To calculate your score, give yourself 2 points for every (a) answer, 1 point for every (b) answer, and 0 points for every (c) answer.

If your score is between 10 and 12, you are in great shape. If your score is between 5 and 9, you are in good shape, but could benefit from further conditioning. If your score is between 0 and 4, you need to get serious about conditioning your body for health.

I even video taped part of it for you =)

Ed has one of the Best Work Ethics I have seen – this is what it takes to lose serious amounts of body fat!

Here was the full fat loss sample workout:

• Romanian Dead Lifts and
• 1 Arm Kettlebell Military Press (3 heavy rounds of 6)
• Romanian Dead Lifts and
• 1 Arm Kettlebell Military Press (3 medium rounds of 12)
• Bulgarian Split Squats (with 2 10 lb chains) and
• Band Rotations and
• Kettlebell Swings and
• Explosive Push Ups (2 “light” rounds of 15)

Body Weight Interval Burst Cardio:

• Lateral Line Hops and
• Box Squat and
• Explosive Crossover Step Ups and
• Prone Step Offs (3 rounds of 2 minutes work / 2 minutes rest)

Ed has lost over 64+ pounds this year, and is on track to hit his goal Before New Years.

I have given him tailored meal plans – he cooks all his food 3 days at a time twice a week.

If you Really want to make Resolutions, prove how bad you want it by Starting Now!

Here is Ed’s “Intermediate” Pictures photos – he ain’t done yet! =)

We TRAIN Hard at Barbarian Strength Gym – Do You Have What it Takes to Change Your Life?

It was snowing pretty hard outside when we started.  Cold and wet Not my favorite training conditions!

So we got started with a bunch of non-moving events inside.  Here is what we did:

• KB Romanian Dead Lift warm up: David/Ed 106 x 20 x 2, Ansley 88 x 20 x 2
• Log Clean and Press (work up to gym/training max): David @ 270, Ansley PR @ 110, Ed PR @ 140 x 3
• Yoke Pick and Hold: David (no belt pr) 700, Ansley PR 510 w assist, Ed PR @ 600
• Rolling Thunder: Ansley 100 x 3 each hand, Ed 110 each hand, David 200 right (missed left)
• Tire Flips for Reps (finally cleared up outside): Ansley 650 x 1, Ed 650 x 11 PR, David 650 x 15 PR.  Ansley 300 x 19 PR, Ed 300 x 25 PR, Ansley 300 x 20 PR, all 60 sec time limit

Good Viking Weather for Great Barbarian Strength Gym Training!

All those commercials telling you that getting in shape is quick and easy are LYING.  Deep down you know this is true.  Anger is one of the best, but most under used tools in personal training , fat loss and fitness.  Get mad at yourself.  Get mad at us. We don’t mind =)

Please take this in the spirit in which it was intended.  For You to lose fat as quickly as possible and for everyone to have the best, most fun experience possible.

1. We are not here to babysit or motivate you.  We are here to provide guidance, tools and accountability. Our knowledge + Your hard work = Results.
2. No Whining
3. Respect your Time and ours – be here before class starts
4. Weigh ins take time.  If you want measured show up early
5. If you are not keeping a Food Log, we can’t help you. Nutrition is responsible for 70% of your Results (or lack thereof). You do the math. Skipping meals is like driving your car without fuel you won’t get anywhere.
6. Alcohol Stops Fat Loss. If you are drinking Anything other than water refer to Rule 2
7. Goals + Deadlines = Motivation
8. If you are not willing to give 100% Stay Home.  Don’t ruin the workout for those who want results.
9. Following these rules Earns you the right to train here.
10. No.  Whining.  Ever.

Motivation is Internal, not External.  Your personal trainer and friends help give you Focus and make the process fun and enjoyable.  But No One can Motivate You but You!

Athletes understand this.  You have to want something so bad you can’t think of anything else.

You can pick small goals or a big goal.  If you do not have a Specific goal, you may be working out – but you are Not Training!

Have to Earn the right to eat that much =)

Here is what we did

• Extended Kettlebell Dead Lifts
• Log Clean and Press
• Skip Drills
• Squats
• Hanging Scissor Leg Lifts

Bonus Round for Cardio: Tire Flips and Sled Drags

If you want to train like an Athlete and get a Real workout, stop by my Gym in Hendersonville NC.

And check out the Barbarian Strength Gym site if you have a minute.