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Showing posts from November, 2019

Why You Should Audit Your Training

The end of year is the time businesses get their plans in order for the following year. You should do the same for yourself. If you’re feeling stuck, frustrated that your efforts haven’t delivered the results you wanted, and you are spinning your wheels, then the answer is a simple, yes. You should audit your training.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/37IWr9I via IFTTT

Why You Should Audit Your Training

The end of year is the time businesses get their plans in order for the following year. You should do the same for yourself. If you’re feeling stuck, frustrated that your efforts haven’t delivered the results you wanted, and you are spinning your wheels, then the answer is a simple, yes. You should audit your training.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/34nneWV via IFTTT

The Hollow Body: The Most Important Skill to Master

If you can’t hold a stable hollow body position on the floor for a good 45 seconds to a minute, it's something you really need to work on. Hollow rocks and hollow holds : There’s a good chance you have been doing them wrong, and because of it, there’s an even better chance they’re not translating to make your other gymnastics skills—like ring rows, pull-ups, push-ups, handstands, and muscle-ups—more efficient.   What do I mean by hollow body position ?   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2KSC9AN via IFTTT

The Hollow Body: The Most Important Skill to Master

If you can’t hold a stable hollow body position on the floor for a good 45 seconds to a minute, it's something you really need to work on. Hollow rocks and hollow holds: There’s a good chance you have been doing them wrong, and because of it, there’s an even better chance they’re not translating to make your other gymnastics skills—like ring rows, pull-ups, push-ups, handstands, and muscle-ups—more efficient.   What do I mean by hollow body position ?   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/34nG5kA via IFTTT

The Holiday Turkey Gut Buster Workout

This is one of the best in-the-gym workouts you will ever try. I use this style of training a lot with my clients who want to get in super shape in minimum time! This is one of the best in-the-gym workouts you will ever try. I use this style of training a lot with my clients who want to get in super shape in minimum time. When done right, this style of training will really drive the metabolism and maximize calorie expenditure.   Warm-up: 5-10 minutes using your warm-up method of choice.   Workout: Follow the workout below, as closely as possible. Make interval mode substitutions where needed (example: If you don’t have a VersaClimber, use a rower instead) read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2QN5IHJ via IFTTT

The Holiday Turkey Gut Buster Workout

This is one of the best in-the-gym workouts you will ever try. I use this style of training a lot with my clients who want to get in super shape in minimum time! This is one of the best in-the-gym workouts you will ever try. I use this style of training a lot with my clients who want to get in super shape in minimum time. When done right, this style of training will really drive the metabolism and maximize calorie expenditure.   Warm-up: 5-10 minutes using your warm-up method of choice.   Workout: Follow the workout below, as closely as possible. Make interval mode substitutions where needed (example: don’t have a VersaClimber, use a Rower instead)   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2seAtuS via IFTTT

The Benefits of the Smith Machine Floor Press

Think of the Smith machine floor press as a chest and triceps building “finisher” to your workout. The floor press is an excellent exercise . It is a particular favorite of mine for guys with long arms. I often use it instead of the bench press for these guys. Here are five benefits of the floor press:   Builds muscle mass in the chest, triceps, and shoulders Increases overall pressing strength Specifically boosts lockout strength A good choice for beginners or those coming back from injury Minimizes shoulder stress for long-armed lifters by limiting range   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/334LUly via IFTTT

7 Clues You Are Doing Your Accessory Work Wrong

Are you treating your accessory work like carnivores treat their vegetables? As an afterthought to the main steak event?   Are you treating your accessory work like carnivores treat their vegetables ? As an afterthought to the main steak event?   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/34mS8ih via IFTTT

7 Clues You Are Doing Your Accessory Work Wrong

Are you treating your accessory work like carnivores treat their vegetables? As an afterthought to the main steak event?   Are you treating your accessory work like carnivores treat their vegetables ? As an afterthought to the main steak event?   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/34mRykB via IFTTT

The Benefits of the Smith Machine Floor Press

Think of the Smith machine floor press as a chest and triceps building “finisher” to your workout. The floor press is an excellent exercise . It is a particular favorite of mine for guys with long arms. I often use it instead of the bench press for these guys. Here are five benefits of the floor press:   Builds muscle mass in the chest, triceps, and shoulders Increases overall pressing strength Specifically boosts lockout strength A good choice for beginners or those coming back from injury Minimizes shoulder stress for long-armed lifters by limiting range   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/336eu60 via IFTTT

More Than a Workout: Learning Curves and Having High Standards

If you really want something significant from your own training, be prepared to put in the time and effort to understand the mechanisms behind your methods. We have high standards at Gym Jones . I don’t just mean the strength and fitness standards that so many people associate us with. I mean it more generally. When we train someone here, we expect effort and intensity, of course, but we also expect them to meet us halfway. We will give you our time, our energy, and all of the training knowledge we’ve accumulated over the years. But it’s what the trainee brings to training that is, in many respects, the much more important contribution . read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/331UwJG via IFTTT

More Than a Workout: Learning Curves and Having High Standards

If you really want something significant from your own training, be prepared to put in the time and effort to understand the mechanisms behind your methods. We have high standards at Gym Jones . I don’t just mean the strength and fitness standards that so many people associate us with. I mean it more generally. When we train someone here, we expect effort and intensity, of course, but we also expect them to meet us halfway. We will give you our time, our energy, and all of the training knowledge we’ve accumulated over the years. But it’s what the trainee brings to training that is, in many respects, the much more important contribution .   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2Xz0Jvu via IFTTT

You Need More Than a Training Template

You change as you lift over time and you change as you age. There's no template for life. Buy my template, and you’ll not only get stronger, but it’s all you’ll ever need . Have you ever heard a popular coach or trainer say this?   Templates are for sale, usually as an ebook or a PDF downloadable file with illustrated instructions. The pitch includes that it’s easy to understand, to do, and promotes consistency. It’s often a twelve, sixteen, or twenty-four-week program that you can repeatedly do without much change.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2QBXG4o via IFTTT

You Need More Than a Training Template

You change as you lift over time and you change as you age. There's no template for life. Buy my template, and you’ll not only get stronger, but it’s all you’ll ever need . Have you ever heard a popular coach or trainer say this?   Templates are for sale, usually as an ebook or a PDF downloadable file with illustrated instructions. The pitch includes that it’s easy to understand, to do, and promotes consistency. It’s often a twelve, sixteen, or twenty-four-week program that you can repeatedly do without much change.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2s4sDnD via IFTTT

Band Pullovers - The Torso Builder

The addition of a band anchored behind you allows you to keep tension on the muscle throughout the entire range. The classic dumbbell pullover is an exercise bodybuilders have been doing for ages . Back in the Golden era they were credited with building bigger lats, pecs, and serratus. Many top bodybuilders also swore they increased the size of your rib cage too. You have probably seen old black and white pictures of people like Arnold Schwarzenegger doing them.   And some people went as far as to call them the upper body squat.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2Qwr77O via IFTTT

The Toxicity of Diet Culture

Let's put an end to fat-shaming and our unhealthy obsession with losing weight. Diet culture is toxic, haven’t you heard?   For many, the impetus behind the anti-diet culture movement is all about putting an end to fat-shaming and our unhealthy obsession with losing weight.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2Opm2vu via IFTTT

Band Pullovers - The Torso Builder

The addition of a band anchored behind you allows you to keep tension on the muscle throughout the entire range. The classic dumbbell pullover is an exercise bodybuilders have been doing for ages . Back in the Golden era they were credited with building bigger lats, pecs, and serratus. Many top bodybuilders also swore they increased the size of your rib cage too. You have probably seen old black and white pictures of people like Arnold Schwarzenegger doing them.   And some people went as far as to call them the upper body squat.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2OuVNUt via IFTTT

The Toxicity of Diet Culture

Let's put an end to fat-shaming and our unhealthy obsession with losing weight. Diet culture is toxic, haven’t you heard?   For many, the impetus behind the anti-diet culture movement is all about putting an end to fat-shaming and our unhealthy obsession with losing weight.   While this is a noble cause, it’s not what this piece is about. Because the truth is, 50 percent of my clients have expressed to me a desire to lose weight—mostly for health, emotional, and aesthetic reasons. I’d like to help them reach their goals.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2KANcy2 via IFTTT

Prime Your New Year's Resolution Now For a Change That Actually Sticks

You have time to prepare presents and decorations. You may not have as much time to prepare for a healthier you in the New Year. Halloween has come and gone and we are officially into the holiday season . Two months of spending and gorging yourself silly which eventually leads to resolution season, where you worry about whatever damage was done. Yet, given the success rate of New Year's resolutions ( 80% fail by February ), maybe we should short-circuit this annual cycle.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2OnZM4V via IFTTT

Prime Your New Year's Resolution Now For a Change That Actually Sticks

You have time to prepare presents and decorations. You may not have as much time to prepare for a healthier you in the New Year. Halloween has come and gone and we are officially into the holiday season . Two months of spending and gorging yourself silly which eventually leads to resolution season, where you worry about whatever damage was done. Yet, given the success rate of New Year's resolutions ( 80% fail by February ), maybe we should short-circuit this annual cycle.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2XnyfVk via IFTTT

5 Tips to Get Fit Over 50

Your training is only a small part of your overall fitness and health program. We all have that moment when we realize that we need to take better care of ourselves. For many of my clients, this moment comes sometime in their 50s. When this moment occurs later in your life, it is important to make sure that you are approaching your health and fitness appropriately to ensure that you are mitigating risk of injury and that you are setting yourself up for success.   Below are my top five tips to help you get fit over the age of 50.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2XgjnrK via IFTTT

5 Tips to Get Fit Over 50

Your training is only a small part of your overall fitness and health program. We all have that moment when we realize that we need to take better care of ourselves. For many of my clients, this moment comes sometime in their 50s. When this moment occurs later in your life, it is important to make sure that you are approaching your health and fitness appropriately to ensure that you are mitigating risk of injury and that you are setting yourself up for success.   Below are my top five tips to help you get fit over the age of 50.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2NPjGqr via IFTTT

How to Use Ascending Reps to Build Size and Strength

Assuming that building strength and muscle ranks highly among your training priorities, then you may be interested to learn about ascending reps. Assuming that building strength and muscle ranks highly among your training priorities, then you may be interested to learn about ascending reps (also known as ladders).   What are ascending reps?   Ascending reps are simply sets of increasing reps, with the same weight, until a total number of reps are completed. You can also work back down again (pyramids) or repeat the sets (waves), but more on this later.   For example, instead of performing 5 sets of 5 reps, you could do:   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2pesIns via IFTTT

How to Use Ascending Reps to Build Size and Strength

Assuming that building strength and muscle ranks highly among your training priorities, then you may be interested to learn about ascending reps. Assuming that building strength and muscle ranks highly among your training priorities, then you may be interested to learn about ascending reps (also known as ladders).   What are ascending reps?   Ascending reps are simply sets of increasing reps, with the same weight, until a total number of reps are completed. You can also work back down again (pyramids) or repeat the sets (waves), but more on this later.   For example, instead of performing 5 sets of 5 reps, you could do:   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/33Nt1oc via IFTTT

How to Get That Elusive Spark Used to Push Limits

It’s easy to get carried away by emotion and let it control you instead of using the energy of it toward a singular effort. The first gym I trained at looked like a set from a 80's action movie . From the outside, it looked like an old stone mill. Every member was given a key to get in and train whatever time of day or night you wanted. At the entrance, there was a table with a boombox, CD cases, and a clipboard to sign in with the date and time.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2O719F0 via IFTTT

How to Get That Elusive Spark Used to Push Limits

It’s easy to get carried away by emotion and let it control you instead of using the energy of it toward a singular effort. The first gym I trained at looked like a set from a 80's action movie . From the outside, it looked like an old stone mill. Every member was given a key to get in and train whatever time of day or night you wanted. At the entrance, there was a table with a boombox, CD cases, and a clipboard to sign in with the date and time.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/33GhneP via IFTTT

The No Excuse Deck of Cards Bodyweight Workout

Try these anywhere, anytime bodyweight exercises, and the killer deck of cards game to build a fun and challenging workout. What if you have a few minutes only, a little time before you get back to work, pick up the kids, go to your next appointment? Do you get in a quick workout in or scroll through the posts on your phone?   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2X1UrEi via IFTTT

The No Excuse Deck of Cards Bodyweight Workout

Try these anywhere, anytime bodyweight exercises, and the killer deck of cards game to build a fun and challenging workout. What if you have a few minutes only, a little time before you get back to work, pick up the kids, go to your next appointment? Do you get in a quick workout in or scroll through the posts on your phone?  The exercises that follow can be done in a quarter of an hour. They are simple and you can do them anywhere. And, at the end of the article, I have shown you how you can adapt them with a friend or training partner to create the Deck of Cards workout and challenge yourself more deeply at the gym. read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2NzPBLx via IFTTT

Double Your Leg Strength One Leg at a Time

Here are some proven exercises to help create explosive power and strength in your legs.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/32wVsW2 via IFTTT

Double Your Leg Strength One Leg at a Time

Here are some proven exercises to help create explosive power and strength in your legs.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2pVziPZ via IFTTT

5 Foolproof Ways to Build Muscular Shoulders

There’s no need to overcomplicate things—packing on muscle for powerful and healthy shoulders can be simple. Your shoulders say everything about you—from the mid-level office employee sitting in his cubicle 9 to 5 with rounded shoulders to the powerful high-level executive standing erect as he leads meetings— your shoulders define how others perceive you .   Tiny narrow shoulders make you look weak and timid—like Bambi.   Massive broad shoulders make you look powerful and confident—like Superman.   If you’re reading this, you and I know two things:   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2PW86v2 via IFTTT

5 Foolproof Ways to Build Muscular Shoulders

There’s no need to overcomplicate things—packing on muscle for powerful and healthy shoulders can be simple. Your shoulders say everything about you—from the mid-level office employee sitting in his cubicle 9 to 5 with rounded shoulders to the powerful high-level executive standing erect as he leads meetings— your shoulders define how others perceive you .   Tiny narrow shoulders make you look weak and timid—like Bambi.   Massive broad shoulders make you look powerful and confident—like Superman.   If you’re reading this, you and I know two things:   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2WQw8Ju via IFTTT

Build a Bigger Back With This Single Arm Breakthrough

Don’t get me wrong, pronated wide grip pulldowns are a good exercise, but they aren’t ideal to train the lats. If you struggle to build a thick, wide back it is probably not because your program sucks. The answer is likely much simpler than that—your technique is crap and you cannot develop a mind-muscle connection (MMC) with the muscles of the back. Chief amongst these muscles is the latissimus dorsi (lats). The lats are the muscles that give you that awesome v-tapered look. To build your lats, the solution isn’t doing more of the same. After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2oR7hso via IFTTT

Build a Bigger Back With This Single Arm Breakthrough

Don’t get me wrong, pronated wide grip pulldowns are a good exercise, but they aren’t ideal to train the lats. If you struggle to build a thick, wide back it is probably not because your program sucks. The answer is likely much simpler than that—your technique is crap and you cannot develop a mind-muscle connection (MMC) with the muscles of the back. Chief amongst these muscles is the latissimus dorsi (lats). The lats are the muscles that give you that awesome v-tapered look. To build your lats, the solution isn’t doing more of the same. After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/34FCFcN via IFTTT

15 Exercise Tips For People Over 50

Here are some exercises that you can try if you are getting into training over the age of 50. They're pretty good for any age, covering strength, core, and balance. Our bodies begin to change drastically after fifty: a more rapid decline in bone density and a greater loss in coordination and motor control. Fortunately, in most cases, all of these things can be slowed or reversed with the implementation of a good fitness program . It’s great to have strength or weight loss goals at this age, but, most importantly, it is the goal to protect one's physical independence.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2PQ3PcR via IFTTT

15 Exercise Tips For People Over 50

Here are some exercises that you can try if you are getting into training over the age of 50. They're pretty good for any age, covering strength, core, and balance. Our bodies begin to change drastically after fifty: a more rapid decline in bone density and a greater loss in coordination and motor control. Fortunately, in most cases, all of these things can be slowed or reversed with the implementation of a good fitness program. It’s great to have strength or weight loss goals at this age, but, most importantly, it is the goal to protect one's physical independence.    read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2pu3jGH via IFTTT

You Shouldn't Train Like the Pros to Build Muscle

All beginners and many intermediates run into the same fundamental problem, they don’t have a pre-existing understanding of nutrition and exercise. Most men come to the gym with the goal of improving their aesthetics. Often they look for guidance through various channels of information, the most common being Google, YouTube, or a fitness blog.   These can be a great place to start, but all beginners and many intermediates run into the same fundamental problem . They don’t have a pre-existing understanding of nutrition and exercise and therefore have no way to evaluate the quality of the information being shared.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/36obl4d via IFTTT

You Shouldn't Train Like the Pros to Build Muscle

All beginners and many intermediates run into the same fundamental problem, they don’t have a pre-existing understanding of nutrition and exercise. Most men come to the gym with the goal of improving their aesthetics. Often they look for guidance through various channels of information, the most common being Google, YouTube, or a fitness blog.   These can be a great place to start, but all beginners and many intermediates run into the same fundamental problem . They don’t have a pre-existing understanding of nutrition and exercise and therefore have no way to evaluate the quality of the information being shared.   read more from Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/2PClWmj via IFTTT