“One shall stand, one shall fall!”

Growing up as a little kid, I freaking LOVED Transformers.  A toy that could start as one thing and then…wait for it….transform…into something completely different – pure brilliance.  Hey look it’s a robot dude – oh wait NO it’s a car!

What’s not to love?

Fast forward to my freshman year of college: I bonded with three new acquaintances over the original Transformers movie on DVD. I now live with one of them, the other does the graphic design work for this site, and I’ll be attending the wedding of the third in the Bahamas in June.

To say that Transformers have played a major role in my life is an understatement.

Welp, today is the day that I give back. I going to teach you how to transform your life and make Optimus Prime proud.  He’s the leader of the Autobots, he protects us from the Decepticons, and he can turn into a mack truck!  I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a guy I’d want to be proud of me.

Make Small Changes, Get Big Results.

I’m going to guess that you plopped down $9.25 to watch the new Transformers movie in the theater.

Sure it was poorly acted, had a terrible plot, and often didn’t make much sense, but damn it was loud, pretty, and fun.  If you try to tell me you didn’t get goosebumps and maybe even cheer out loud the first time you saw Optimus Prime transform (low quality, sorry) then you’re lying.

Optimus is not a fan of lying.  Stop it.

Now that you’re done lying, I want you to think back to that scene – the HELL did a massive truck transform into a freaking walking and talking robot?

Easy.

One step at a time.

It wasn’t one giant move that turned Optimus from shape A to shape B – it was really just one tiny process after the other.  The front grill receded, then his headlights inverted (sounds painful, I know),  then the windshield split apart,  then the  wheels tuck under, then the sides of the truck pulled out, etc.  14 million tiny processes later, Optimus had transformed (see what I did there) from a mack truck to a robot.

You will transform in the same way:

One step at a time.

1) Transform your mind.

If you weigh a lot more than your ideal weight, you might feel like one of the tiny Optimus Primes in this picture: overwhelmed.

That journey to the ‘finish line’ feels impossibly far away, the odds against you seem enormous, and your chance of success appears to be minimal.  

That mentality will get you nowhere.

Don’t think about how big the gap is between where you are now and where you want to be.  Instead, concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other, starting the next step in your process, and moving a little bit closer towards closer towards that goal.

Imagine a young Optimus Prime transforming for the first time – yes I know there was never a baby Optimus (was there?), but look at the tiny Prime at the VERY top and just pretend for a minute.

He was probably pretty intimidated, right?

However, by only moving one tiny thing at a time and making only change at a time, over and over and over, he eventually reached a result that was pretty damn awesome.

You need to transform how you look at each day. Don’t say “holy crap I have 200 pounds to lose, I’m screwed!”  Instead, say “This is the new me, and I’m going to make one change this week.  And then next week I will make another change.”  And so on…

Pretty soon, you will be a newer, upgraded version of yourself.

2) Transform Your Diet.

Make small changes to your diet that you can sustain for the rest of your life.

Here’s a simple example – I used to eat Skippy peanut butter sandwiches on white bread, every day of my life, since I was probably five years old.  After learning about how unhealthy white bread is, I made the switch to wheat bread.  A month after that, I made the change from Skippy to natural peanut butter.  After reading about how many types of wheat bread contain high fructose corn syrup, I went one step further to flaxseed bread.

I know for a fact that the old Steve never would have touched a PB sandwich on flaxseed bread. However, because it was just one change (white to wheat bread), followed by another single change (Skippy to natural PB)…my picky eating habits were okay with it. Bam!  My PB sandwiches have been completely transformed.

Take that Megatron!

Try making small changes to your diet too:

• Switch from white rice to brown rice
• Switch from white bread to wheat bread
• Try ONE new vegetable a week.  They won’t hurt you, I swear.
• Slowly cut back on the number of sodas you drink daily (liquid calories are brutal, get them out of your diet!)
• Get grilled vegetables instead of fries as your side when going out to eat this week.
• Skip the popcorn at the movie theater when you go see Kick-Ass (who’s seen it?  How was it?)

Rome wasn’t built in a day.  A robot doesn’t become a truck in one step.  You won’t lose 100 pounds overnight.  Slowly transform your diet, make changes that you can live with, and the new YOU will have a much better chance of fighting off the Decepticons and obesity.

I like our chances against both of those enemies.

3) Transform your workout.

If you’re just getting started on your weight loss journey, I’m going to guess that the first thing you thought to do was go for a run.  Maybe after a few weeks of running and a few pounds lost, you decided to join a gym…where you spend most of your time on the treadmill or on the elliptical. 

You’re not alone.

Every time I work out, I have to walk through the overcrowded treadmills, ellipticals, and machines to get to my mecca: the free weight section.  Anybody who reads this site knows that I’m a huge fan of lifting weights over just cardio, and a strong advocate of free weights over machines.  [side note: unless you're a vampire, walking on a treadmill INSIDE when it's 70 and sunny outside should be illegal].

Sorry Optimus, your machine brethren can’t hold a candle to free weights when it comes to building strength and stability.

Now, I know just getting started with weight lifting is scary, especially if you don’t really know what you’re doing and the free-weight section is loaded with roided-up meatheads.  If you’re a girl, this section of the gym can be downright terrifying (in which case, you should take notes from Moe).

Try this out: instead of jumping headfirst into the free weight section, try taking things one exercise at a time. Every week, set aside 15 minutes to learn about a new exercise, and then spend 5 minutes in the gym incorporating it into your routine.

• Instead of doing the leg extension machine or any sort of leg machine, do squats (and go DOWN far enough!) or lunges with dumbbells in your hands.
• Instead of doing the chest press machine, lie down on a bench and do dumbbell presses, or try dips. Push ups work too!
• Instead of doing the lat-pull down machine, do pull ups! Too tough? try inverted rows.

A few months of just one new exercise a week will leave you with tons of options for a full free-weight routine, a lot more knowledge about which exercises work which muscles, and far more preparation for real-world situations than the machine-trained humans around you.

Here’s another way to look at things.  If you can only do one push up right now, how the hell are you going to do 50 in a row some day?  One at a time! Do two in a row this week, try for 3 or 4 in a row next week.  If you can do just one more, each time out, you will be getting stronger.

All of these “just one more’s” eventually add up to “holy crap look what I did!”

More than meets the eye.

If you’re trying to get in shape, whether its slimming down or bulking up, I know there’s a better version of yourself hidden inside you.  The great thing about being human is that you can really transform yourself into whatever you want if you’re willing to work for it.

• If you want to be big and strong, start lifting heavy weights and eating lots of high-quality food.
• If you want to be a great runner, start running and get faster every day.
• If you want to be on Ninja Warrior, start doing a million pull ups and practice your Japanese.

Whatever you want to become, if you break it down into steps and get started TODAY on that first step, you can accomplish your goals and you will transform into whatever you want.

Now, go make Optimus Prime proud.

-Steve

Warrior Dash Update: We’ve already raised 1400 dollars for Nerd Dash 2010! If you haven’t visited the site yet, please go check it out, watch the (hopefully) hilarious video, and consider making a small donation: 5 bucks, 10 bucks, whatever.

Remember, small additions can add up to huge results…like sending 4 cabins worth of kids with cancer to Camp Sunshine!

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Here are some other popular posts that will get you motivated:

• Become a Jedi: Learn the Ways of the Force
• Life Lessons Learned from Billy Madison
• The Lord of the Rings Guide to Getting Sh** Done
• The Definitive Guide to Hacking into the Matrix: Are you the One?

photo:isayx3, shawnwarne_60000, kelvin255,  revlimit , boy wonder

So you’re looking to build up your muscles, and you’ve learned how great it is to train with compound exercises.  Rather than isolate your chest for 5 exercises, your shoulders for 5 exercises, and triceps for 5 exercises, why not pick a few that work all three at the same time!  One such exercise is the Dip.

Now, a bodyweight dip requires you to have a pretty good base level of strength throughout your body, because you’re going to be lifting up your whole body up and down.  Yeah, the dips I’m talking about require you to grab two parallel bars, hoist yourself up, and then lower your entire body by bending your elbows.  I don’t recommend the dips where you put your feet up on something in front of you because it puts your arms and shoulders in a really weird angle and you’re just asking for injury.  So, today’s exercise is just the dips where you’re supporting your whole body weight below you.

Okay so here is what you do:

• First of all, make sure you can do a dip. Don’t hop up there and then lower yourself unless you’re fairly confident you can get through at least one of these things.  We can’t have you tearing any muscles or falling on somebody, because that would suck ass.
• Grab the parallel bars, and hoist yourself up. At this point look straight ahead, and contract your stomach muscles (just like you do when you do squats and deadlifts).  If you’re keeping your abs tight for all of these exercises, you’ll never have to do a crunch again and you’ll still have washboard abs.
• Cross your legs and bend your knees if you like (so your feet are out behind you), for stability purposes, but keep your head up and look straight ahead.
• Keeping your elbows at your side, lower yourself until your triceps are parallel to the floor. A lot of websites will recommend you go past parallel, but I think this puts too much strain on your shoulders at a weird angle and can cause injury/discomfort.  I only go down to parallel and haven’t had any issues, so I’d recommend the same.
• Once you hit parallel, explode back up until JUST before you’re able to lock your elbows. By not locking your elbows, you keep the tension in your muscles and don’t jack up your joints.  w00t.
• Now do another one.  And then another!

Those are dips.  By keeping your elbows as tight as possible, keep your abs tights, and keep your body in balance as you go up and down.  Here’s the best video I’ve found online of a guy doing a good dip with great form:

Perfect form dips Video

Some extra tips:

• Don’t swing - this goes for practically every exercise.  If you start swinging your body as you go up and down, you take the emphasis off the muscles you’re actually trying to work.
• Don’t go down past parallel - This is a point of controversy with some, but for me I’d rather not risk it.  A few months back I was teaching a client how to do dips and this out of shape guy came over to tell us that we need to be going all the way down to the floor (essentially lowering our triceps 30 degrees past parallel).  I thanked the man for his input, then went back to doing them my way.
• Don’t flair out your elbows if you can avoid it. The more “out” your elbows are, the more emphasis on your chest.  Elbows tight = emphasis on shoulders and triceps.
• Don’t settle for cheap substitutes – don’t use dip machines or other isolation tricep machines – These don’t recruit any of your stabilizer muscles, put your body at weird angles, and don’t give you full results.  Stick with bodyweight dips!

Now, once you can do 3 sets of 15 dips no problem, you have a few options to ramp up the difficulty:

• Add weight – picking up a dumbbell between your feet, wearing a weighted backpack, or wearing a weight belt with some weight plates hanging off it.  At one point last year I was doing dips with a 60 pound dumbbell between my feet but it got too difficult to carry it with my feet, and it started to bother my shoulders.  I’d recommend a weight belt or backpack if you’re going to do dips with heavy weight.
• Your other option, and the better option in my opinion - GO SLOW – keep your abs tight, and lower yourself ridiculously slowly.  Your body will have to recruit every muscle in your chest, shoulders, and triceps (including all stabilizer muscles) to keep your body under control.  Personally, I would do dips without weight after you’ve already done an exercise like Incline Dumbbell Presses.  Rather than add weight, do them slowly and safely.

There you have it: a great bodyweight exercise that will have your triceps popping out in no time (provided there isn’t too much body fat covering them).  If you have limited time in the gym or at your house, you can work out every muscle in your body with these three exercises:

• Squats (read about perfect squats here) or Deadlifts (learn about them here) -  works every muscle in your legs, abs, and lower back
• Dips (which you just read about) -  works your chest, shoulders, triceps, and abs.
• Pull Ups or Chin Ups (read about them here) – works your back, biceps, and forearms.

Look at that, in just three exercises you’ve done a complete full body workout.  Crank that workout out in 20 minutes, and then go play some Halo.

-Steve

I went to the gym on Sunday night and I failed to realize that the gym closes really early on that day.  I literally had 20 minutes in the gym before they turned off all the lights, so I put together a quick routine to work out every single muscle in my body.  If you don’t have a gym membership, read the end of this post for the 15-minute bodyweight workout.  See that? Everybody wins!

Squats- I have a love/hate relationship with squats.  Most of the time I hate them, but I love how I feel afterward.  My legs hate squats, but they love it when I can lift even more weight the next time.  Plus, when you do squats with perfect form, you work every muscle in your leg, lower back, AND your abs.  After a quick 2 minute warm-up (rapid fire jumping jacks to get my heart racing and muscles warm), I did three sets of Squats (reps of 10, 8, 6) waiting one minute between sets.  Each time I added weight to the bar.  To read about perfect squats and why you need to do them, read my squats article here.

Incline dumbbell press – Grab a weightlifting bench, and set the angle at 45 degrees or so.  Grab two dumbbells, and press them up above your head as if you were doing an incline benchpress with a barbell.  Three sets of 12, 10, 8 (increasing weight, one minute between sets).  This exercise works your chest, shoulders, and triceps.  Concentrate on perfect form, and don’t lower your upper arms past parallel (to the floor).  Bring your hands in together at the top so you almost clink the two dumbbells together.

Pull ups and chin ups – Find a bar, grab it with either an overhand or underhand grip, and pull yourself up.  Overhand grip (palms away from you) will work your back more than your biceps, and an underhand grip (palms facing you) will work your biceps more than your back.  Do a set of overhand grip pull ups until exhaustion, wait a minute, do another set of overhand grip pull ups until exhaustion, wait a minute, then do a set of underhand chin ups until exhaustion.  Make sure you go all the way down (just before locking out your arms), and get way above the bar on the top, or it doesn’t count!  If you can’t do a full pull up yet, read this article (with video) on how to build up to them.

Want to burn even more fat while you’re at it? Do this whole routine as a giant circuit (you can ready more about circuit training here).  Keep the weight the same for each set, but go in this order:

• Squats – 12 reps
• Incline Chest Press – 12 reps
• Pull ups – as many as you can.
• 30 jumping jacks

Do this cycle 3 times, without stopping.  15 minutes, build muscle and burn fat.  Not too shabby!

No Gym? Do body-weight squats or lunges (with your hands behind your head, prisoner style), and then do decline push ups (with your feet up on your bed or a chair or something).  Stick with regular pull ups.   For a more accurate description on how to do these exercises, read my article on body weight exercises, “No Gym? No Problem!”

Pretty damn simple, pretty damn effective.

-Steve

Open up any copy of Muscle & Fitness, and you’re bound to find dozens of different workouts that will sculpt the three parts of your triceps, individual abs, all parts of your shoulder, etc., with ultra-specific exercises that isolate individual muscles.  These routines will ask you to spend 5 or 6 days a week in the gym for two hours at a time.  Unless you’re a body builder, taking steroids, or you don’t have a life, exercising like this is ridiculous!  If you have a job, friends, family, and a hobby or two, two hours a day in the gym, six days a week just isn’t an option.

I spent a few months in college following one of these routines because I didn’t know any better (and I had the free time).  I’d spend close to two hours a day in the gym, doing six or seven exercises of at least three sets each for the muscle group of the day, and then come home and drink my protein shake like they said in the magazine, and I did this religiously for three months.  You know what I got out of it?  Not much.

Exercising like this is time consuming and not practical.  “Appearance is a consequence of fitness” is a phrase I truly believe in, and it makes a lot of sense.  Don’t worry about exercising to look good.  Exercise to get strong and healthy, and you’ll end up looking good as a side effect (not to shabby).  Rather than doing time-consuming isolation exercises, concentrate on exercises that recruit as many muscles as possible.  If you can do one exercise that uses three muscle groups in only 10 minutes, why bother doing 6 different exercises working each individually?  Sure each muscle might get worked a little harder that way, but its going to take you at least three times as long.  Unless you’re hell bent on becoming a body-builder, the benefits don’t outweigh the cost.  Let’s take a look at the four or five key exercises you need to have in your gym routine.  You can get all of these exercises done in one 45-minute session and you’ll have worked practically every single muscle in your body.

• Squats and Deadlifts: If you “work out” and these exercises aren’t in your repertoire, you’re wasting your time.  Not surprisingly, you won’t see many people doing these exercises in your typical gym because they think they’ll get hurt doing them.  This is untrue.  If you do squats and deadlifts correctly, you will have ridiculously strong and stable legs, back, and core (which is crucial for injury prevention).  Injuries occur because these muscles aren’t strong enough in certain situations (moving a couch, carrying your kids around, swinging a golf club, etc.).  Read how to do a perfect squat HERE, and read how to do a perfect deadlift HERE.  I guarantee you’ll earn the respect of everybody in your gym when you start doing deadlifts with three plates on each side.  Only have 10 lbs on each side to start?  That’s fine, get stronger every day, and you’ll get there eventually.
• Pull Ups/Chin Ups: Rather than doing bicep curl after bicep curl (lame, and vain), do pull ups and chin ups.  Ever seen a fat rock climber?  Nope, because you need incredible strength to pull your body weight up the side of a mountain.  I feel like this is one exercise that is a true test of your strength, which is why it’s one of my favorites.  If you’re not strong enough to do pull ups and chin ups yet, see if your gym has an assisted pull up machine; these are better for you than using the pull down machine.  Read about pull ups and chin ups HERE.
• Presses (chest/shoulder): I’m a big fan of incline dumbbell chest presses, because they work your chest, shoulders, triceps, and every muscle in between.  Set a bench at a little less than a 45 degree angle, grab a pair of dumbbells, and press them up above you as if you were bench-pressing.   Other options would be to do a regular bench press on a flat bench, or standing shoulder press.

If you’re just starting out in the gym, I would strongly recommend either a full body routine or two day split, making sure you go ALL OUT for 45 minutes and no more. Focus on just these exercises and get really strong at each of them.  Start with a low weight, and concentrate on having PERFECT form.  I have a lot of respect for a guy that can squat down past parallel, even if the weight on the bar is minimal.  You might ask: what about my biceps/triceps/abs/etc?  When you do pull ups and chin ups, your biceps get a hell of a workout.  When you do bench presses, your triceps get worked like crazy.  When you do a deadlift, you also work abs, lower back, traps, and forearms along with your legs.

Only after you’ve advanced to a high level of strength (squat 1.5 times your body weight, deadlift twice your body weight, etc.) with these exercises would I recommend doing isolation exercises.  If you’re not there yet, don’t worry about it.  Try to add weight each week to these exercises while maintaining good form.

Here’s a sample full-body routine with these exercises:

• Squats: 4 sets (reps of 12, 10, 8, 6 – increasing weight each set wait 1 minute between sets)
• Incline Dumbell Press: 4 sets (reps of 12,10,8,6 – increasing weight each set, wait 1 minute between sets)
• Deadlifts: 4 sets (reps of 12, 10, 8, 6, increase weight each set, wait one minute between sets)
• Pull ups or Chin ups: 3 sets to exhaustion (do as many as you can in each set).  If you do pull ups this time, do chin ups the next time.
• Stretch afterwards!

Your muscles get rebuilt in your off-days, so I wouldn’t do this routine two days straight.  Do it on Monday, run sprints on Tuesday, go for a walk on Wednesday, and then do this routine again on Thursday, sprints on Friday, and then take Saturday and Sunday off.  That’s an hour and a half total in the gym, 40 minutes of sprint, and an hour of walking.  Only 3 hours and 10 minutes out of your week.

Sounds too simple and too easy to build muscle right?  Not true.  If you eat high quality protein, fruits, and vegetables while exercising like this you will build muscle mass.  Give it a shot, and simplify your routine.

-Steve

Word Count: 450 NF Difficulty: Advanced Goal: Build Muscle

If you guys have been following the blog for a few months, you know that back at the beginning of April I started a new workout routine, emphasizing full body routines three times a week.  I worked in some Olympic style workouts, and even some circuits to get my heart pumping and work some cardio into my weight training.  If you’re just getting started with fitness, I think full body workouts are absolutely the best way to jump in.

Now, it’s always important to mix up your workout routine too from time to time so your muscles don’t adapt too much and you start to see diminishing returns.  If you read yesterday’s blog, you know about my decision to switch to a more natural/primal diet (as much as possible), I decided it’s time for a switch up on my workout too.

Here’s the new plan: I’m going to do a upper/lower split rather than a full body workouts for the next twelve weeks, allowing me to really concentrate on building strength in each half of my body on alternate days.  At the moment, when I do certain taxing exercises (squats, deadlifts, dumbbell presses, etc.), I pretty much expend all my mental and physical energy and the rest of my workout suffers.  At the moment I’m trying to build muscle mass, so I’ll concentrating on my upper body one day, and then my lower body two days later, really going all out and get the most out of my 40 minutes in the gym.  I’m going to keep the workouts ultra-intense and heavy and get the hell out of there as quickly as possible.

• Monday – Upper Body
• Wednesday – Lower Body
• Friday – Upper Body
• Monday – Lower Body
• Wednesday – Upper Body
• Friday – Lower Body

For my upper body, these are the exercises I’m going to concentrate on:

• Incline dumbbell chest press
• Bench press
• Body weight dips
• Shoulder presses
• Pull Ups
• Chin Ups

For my lower body, I’m going to concentrate on these exercises:

• Squats
• Lunges
• Deadlifts
• Romanian Deadlifts

Notice anything?  It looks deceptively simple.  “But what about bicep curls, tricep extensions, calf raises, shrugs, forearm curls, etc?”  By concentrating on lifting heavy amounts of weight

As with my previous workouts, I’ll be concentrating on keeping my rep range in the 6-12 range, and minimizing time between sets (a minute or less) to really build muscle size and bulk me up a little bit.  I’m still going to work in a day of Olympic Lifting here and there, and I’m also going to continue interval training (wooooo sprints) on off-days to burn as much of the fat on my body as possible.  Due to various reasons, my weight has dropped down to 180 lbs.  I’m going to hopefully get my weight back up to 187-190 over these twelve weeks, and then really concentrate on burning any fat left on my frame, leaving me looking like King Leonidas.

I’ll also be making some changes to my diet, influenced by cavemen.  Yes cavemen.  Check back tomorrow for what that.

-Steve

Word Count: 652 NF Difficulty: Advanced

I’ve been going to the gym here in Atlanta for about a year and a half now, and you know how many people (other than myself) I’ve ever seen do a deadlift?  ZERO.

Not a single person in the entire time I’ve been in there has done a deadlift. I’m sure there are some that I just haven’t seen yet, but it’s pretty crazy to think that I have yet to run into somebody doing one, considering how often I’m there.  After all, it is the most basic, primal, mass-building, testosterone pumping, results driven exercise out there.  It’s the exercise that separates the men from the boys, the heroes from the chumps.  You’re not a chump, are you?

Deadlifts work your legs, butt, back, arms, forearms, shoulders, traps, and abs. Not bad for one exercise!  Oh, and it also pumps up your whole body and can even release extra testosterone, which will help you in your muscle building.  If you’re a skinny guy looking to bulk up and you’re not doing deadlifts and squats (read my squats article here), you’re just wasting your time.

I think I have an idea why nobody else is doing deadlifts at my gym – because they’re scared of getting hurt. I was scared of deadlifts for a long time too; in fact, it probably took me a year of doing them (with light weights) before I realized that I was doing it wrong (using way too much of my back).  However, since I’ve studied the exercise and put in some time, I’ve seen massive gains in my deadlift maximum and it’s beyond exciting – I’ve added 50 lbs to my deadlifts in the past month and a half.

Think about our ancestors: they didn’t have a weight rack to deal with, or a Smith machine to help them out – they had heavy rocks, logs, and carcasses they needed to move from one place to another.  Simple enough – you can either pick it up, or you’re too weak.  If you’re too weak, you might not have dinner for your family that night, or you might not have a place to sleep, so you found a way to GET strong enough.  Be more like the cavemen!

Deadlifts work your entire body. Forearm curls? Waste of time.  Shrugs with dumbbells? Useless.  500 sit ups? Why bother?  I guarantee you by the time you’re deadlifting big weight you’ll have massive arms and legs, forearms that you can hammer nails with, a crazy strong lower back, and abs that are beyond ridiculous.

Rather than explain it to you in 1000 words, I found a great video that shows great form and emphasizes proper technique.  After the video, I’ll describe the most important things to keep in mind:

Proper Deadlift Technique Video (1:30)

Things to keep in mind when doing deadlifts:

• Don’t arch your back (or roll it in the other direction). Keep your abs tight the ENTIRE TIME, and keep your back straight (the guy in video does really good job with this).
• Keep the bar as close to you as possible – almost roll it up your shins until you get to your knees, and then almost roll it up your thighs until you’re upright.
• As you bring it past your knees, don’t think about pulling up with your back, thrust in with your hips (um, that’s what she said? COME ON)
• Keep your head up and chest out as you lift - this will help you keep your back aligned properly.
• As you bring the weight up, you want your legs to straighten out simultaneously as your hips come in completely - form a straight line at the same time with your hips, knees and feet.

Did this article help you? Was it enough of a motivator to get you to want to do deadlifts?  Let me know at steve@nerdfitness.com if it didn’t and let me know what I can explain better.

-Steve

Word Count: 1224 NF Difficulty: Beginner – Intermediate

You want to get in shape, but you’re broke as **** and can’t afford a gym membership.  It’s cool, Spartans didn’t have gyms back in the day either, and I think they turned out okay (except for the whole dying thing).  So what can you do to burn some fat and build build some muscle without a gym?  READ ON SUCKA!

The only equipment I’ll be suggesting here is a pull up bar, and a bench.  If you don’t have these, head down to the local school and use their monkey bars and park bench.  Just make sure you’re wearing pants, or Chris Hansen will be on the scene faster than you can say “pedophile.”

Nerd Fitness Challenge – In honor of the 300 workout, I made a few challenges for you to try this weekend.  Depending on your fitness level, pick the right test, and see how fast you can do it (with GOOD FORM).  You don’t have to do all exercises in one set by the way, split it up how you need to, just try to minimize rest and finish as quickly as possible.  Descriptions of all exercises are after the challenge below:

Level 1: 20 Jumping Jacks, 1 Pull up, 20 Squats (hands out in front), 20 Push ups, 20 Lunges (10 each leg), 20 Decline Pushups (feet up on bench), 1 Chin up. 102 total reps

Level 2: 40 Jumping Jacks, 5 Pull Ups, 40 Prisoner Squats, 40 Pushups, 30 Lunges (15 each leg), 25 Decline Pushups, 15 Jump Ups, 5 Chin Ups,. -200 total reps

Level 3: 50 Jumping Jacks, 15 pull ups, 50 Arms-Up Squats, 50 Pushups, 50 Lunges (25 each leg), 15 Jump Ups, 40 Decline Pushups, 20 Single-Leg deadlifts (10 each leg), 10 chin ups. – 300 total reps

Only attempt the level of fitness that you’re capable of completing.  If you have to time your challenge with a calendar because it took you two days to do 25 pull ups, maybe you should have stuck with level 2.  Pull ups = get used to them, because they’re a great test of strength and fitness.

Feel free to post your finished times in the comments.

Here is a description of all exercises if you need more explanation:

Push Ups – Still the bread and butter of all body weight exercises.  You know why?  Because they don’t require a gym, they work your shoulders, your chest, and your triceps all at the same time.  You can do these in your hotel room, in your parent’s basement (don’t tell anybody you still live there), out in a park, wherever.  Keep your stomach tight, your back straight, your hands wider than shoulder width apart.

Level 2: Put your feet up on a bed, and do the pushups at a decline angle.  This will require more effort from your shoulders, and is a great replacement exercise for the incline dumbbell press that I love so much.

Level 3: Close grip push ups.  Keep your hands just barely wider than shoulder width apart, and your elbows close to your side.  This will work your triceps extra hard.

Squats - One of the best exercises you can ever do to build power and muscle, the squat is pure gold.  Just because you don’t have weights doesn’t mean you can’t get anything out of squats.  To do a proper squat, take two steps forward quickly and crouch like you’re getting ready to jump/tackle somebody.  Keep an eye on your feet (how they’re angled out slightly), and your back (it’s flat and your abs are tight).  This is the stance you want to be in.  Put your arms straight out in front of you for balance.  As you squat, contract those abs (I know you have them, they might just be under a few layers of flab), keep your back straight, your chin up, and your butt back.  Go down until your thighs are parallel to the floor, and explode back up.

Level 2: For more of a challenge, put your hands behind your head like you’re a prisoner, or put them both way above your head like you’re getting robbed at gun point.  Ha, those probably aren’t the best analogies to use, but damnit they work.

Level 3: Do one legged deadlifts.  Pick a leg and stand on it in the crouched position.  Lift your other leg out behind you.  As you bend your leg (keeping your ass back and your abs tight), go down until your thigh is parallel to the floor, your hands can touch the ground, and then explode up on that leg.  That’s one rep.  If you don’t have the coordination for this yet, do it while standing next to a wall and use the wall for support.  This will greatly help build your stabilizer muscles in your legs.

Lunges – Stand with your feet together, and your hands on your hips.  Step way out with one leg, and drop the other knee (almost) to the ground.  Explode up and back with your front leg.  That’s one rep.  Now do the other leg, unless you just want one giant leg (which could be funny).

Level 2: Put your hands behind your head (like you’re a prisoner), and step forward with your right foot, and drop down.  At the bottom of your lunge, twist your torso to your right 90 degrees. Twist back to straight ahead, then explode up and back with your right leg and bring them back together.  Now step forward with your left, twist to the left at the bottom, then explode back and up to your legs.

Level 3: Stand 3 feet out in front of a bed, facing away from it.  Take your right leg, and step backwards with it so that your right foot is now on the bed, and you’re ready to do a lunge (still facing away from the bed).  Put your hands on your hips, and slowly lower your left leg until your thigh is parallel to the ground, then explode.  (Does this explanation work for you?  Email me at steve@nerdfitness.com if it doesn’t).

Step ups – If you have a bed/bench/chair and a high enough ceiling, put one foot on the bed, the other on the floor and “step up.”  See where the name came from?  Then, step back down, and step up with the same leg again.  Do 10-15 reps on one side, then switch to the other.

Level 2 - Jump ups.  These are used in the 300 Challenge.  Only do it if you have a big enough platform to jump on, and you’re not going to hit your head!  Keeping your abs tight and back straight, jump up onto the bed/bench, and as you land come down into a squat position.  Important: don’t jump back down, step down with both feet, then jump back up for your next rep.

Pull Ups – Probably my favorite exercise of them all.  Head over to those monkey bars, grab the bar with your palms facing away from you, and pull yourself up.  It’s that simple.  If you can’t do a full pull up yet, have a friend come with you, and have him pick your legs up as you do them.  Your other option is to sort of jump and get yourself above the bar (like you just finished a pull up), and then slowly lower yourself back down.  Keep working on these until you can do a real pull up.

Mix it up: Try chin ups, do pull ups with your palms facing towards you.  This will work your biceps especially, along with your forearms and back.

Have a great weekend, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.

-Steve

Yesterday we went over the Tabata Protocol, an exercise method that only lasts four minutes but can do more for your aerobic (and anaerobic capacity) than 60 minutes of cardio.  Don’t think it’s just limited to running and biking however; you can do other exercises that will work your full body and leave you crying on the floor like a baby when you’re done, and I mean that in the best way possible.  Here are some other exercises that will work burn major calories and kick your ass, while also improving your endurance, strength, and ability to operate at maximum capacity for longer periods of time.

• Squat Thrusters – If you have a set of dumbbells, hold them up at your shoulders, do a squat, and then when you stand up thrust your shoulders up and do a shoulder press.  Your goal is to do as many reps as possible (with good form) in the 20 seconds.  Keep the weights right next to you so you keep your rest period to exactly 10 seconds.  Stand by a clock or keep a stop watch handy.  Here’s a handy video to show good form on Squat Thrusters:
  
  Dumbbell Thrusters
• Jump Rope – After you read last week’s article on jumping rope, maybe you want to mix it in here with some Tabata.  Next time you’re watching Arrested Development reruns, see what you can get done during the 4 minute commercial break.
• Push Ups - Don’t go for a specific number, just try and do as many push ups as possible in the 20 seconds for each interval.  Remember to work on good form, and write down the number of reps you do in each set.
• Burpees – Funny name for an ass-kicking exercise.  Stand up, then squat down, kick your legs out, do a push up, bring your legs back in, and explode up into a jump.  Here’s a video showing the exercise in action:
  
  Burpees
• Pull Ups – This will test your back, biceps and forearms to the limit.  Pull ups are my favorite exercise.

These are just a few examples.  Concentrate on exercises that work your whole body, that you can do safely but at maximum effort.  The great thing about Tabata is you can always improve.  If you did 10 burpees per segment last week, this week go for 11.  The better you get, the more reps you’ll be able to do in each 20-second set.  Always get stronger and faster.

Want to see some crazy Tabata in action? Check out this CrossFit workout in Oahu, where people did 8 rounds of Squats, Push-ups, Sit-ups, and Pull ups.  Technically it’s only 16 minutes of exercise, but look at these guys by the end of it.  That’s how I want to feel when I’m done exercising.  What did you accomplish in the last 16 minutes?

Oahu Tabata Exercise

What can you accomplish in 4 minutes?

-Steve

Warning: This article deals with a highly advanced exercise routine.  Attempt at your own risk, and make sure you’re physically fit enough to do so.

There are hundreds of websites, workout DVDs, and equipment that claim to make you lose 20 lbs, build rock-hard muscles, and look like Hercules in just a few minutes a day.  They’re all full of crap…or so I thought.  It turns out one method ACTUALLY WORKS: Tabata.

Developed by Izumi Tabata, Ph.D., a former researcher at Japan’s National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya, Tabata is a method of exercise that lasts only 4 minutes long but absolutely kicks your ass.  Here’s what you do: pick an activity and go all-out for 20 seconds, and then rest for 10 seconds.  Repeat this cycle 8 times straight for a total of 4 minutes.

Does it work?

Dr. Tabata took two groups of elite atheletes and put them through 6 weeks of training (5 days a week). Group 1 Ran 60 minutes a day at 70% capacity, while Group 2 did sprints in the Tabata principle (sprint for 20 seconds, rest for 10, sprint for 20, etc. for 4 minutes.  At the end of the 6 weeks:

• Group 1 increased only their aerobic capacity (how long you can run) by 9.5% and anaerobic capacity (how long you can run at maximum effort) by 0%.
• Group 2 increased their maximum aerobic capacity by 14% AND increased their maximum anaerobic capacity by 28%.

For more information on this study (that goes WAY more in depth), read this article.

Starting out?

You might think you can survive a measly 4 minutes; however, if you’re not in great shape, Tabata workouts are probably too intense.  If you’re just starting out with fitness and looking to work your way up to Tabata, start with regular interval training (explained in detail here) first until you’re ready.  Then, mix in some Tabata by starting with only 2 minutes of exercise (4 sets of intervals) and work your way up to 8.  Concentrate on safely going all out so you don’t pull a hamstring or hurt yourself.  Remember, this was developed for Olympians, and at the end of 4 minutes it left them lying on the floor.  It will take both physical and mental strength to get through these routines on a consistent basis.  Mind of matter!

Which exercises should I do?

Start with a 5 minute warm-up to get your heart pumping and loosen up your muscles.  Always end with a 5 minute cool down/stretch to bring yourself back down to earth.  You want to try and pick exercises that recruit the most muscles possible for maximum fat burning:

• Sprints – Simple enough.  Sprint for 20 seconds, rest for 10. Sprint for 20, rest for 10.  This is tough to do without a partner yelling out your times to you.  I run with a stop watch with big numbers and glance at it around 20 seconds to make sure I stay on time.
• Elliptical Machine – Less wear and tear on your joints, but tougher to go “all out” because it can only go so fast.  Crank the resistance all the way up if you can handle it.
• Rowing Machine – Ow.  This will explain why guys that rowed Crew in college were freaking ripped.
• Stationary Bike – It’s a bike.  Pedal like hell.

If you can, have a friend help you for the 4 minutes to both motivate you and keep track of time.  Tomorrow morning will be my first attempt

-Steve

When was the last time you jumped rope?

When you were seven in in Mr. Whathisface’s P.E. class, right?  You probably had fun, you probably wiped out once or twice, and wacked yourself in the back of the head with the rope.  I’m telling you to bring it back, son!  In any boxing gym around the world, you’ll notice jacked guys with zero body fat beating the **** out of each other, beating the **** out of a punching bag, and jumping rope.  Why jump rope?  Because it enhances coordination and builds stamina.  As a boxer, you need to be both light on your feet, coordinated, and have enough endurance to go 15 rounds.  I just bought myself one and it’s kicking my ass.  My calves hate me.  I love it.

Here’s some tips on getting started:

• Find a surface with some give. Don’t jump on concrete if you can avoid it, because you’ll be jumping up and down repeatedly which could cause wear and tear on your joints.  On a mat or carpet is best.
• Pick a good rope! Don’t go for the 3 dollar Dora the Explorer rope at CVS, but don’t worry about buying the gold plated one with diamond bearings either.  Find one that’s between 10 and 20 bucks with some weight to it.  If you buy one that’s too light you’ll have trouble whipping it around because it just doesn’t have enough momentum from being so light.  Any sporting good store, or even Target’s sporting good section should have one.
• Pick the right length: step right on the center of the rope and bring both handles up to our chest.  The handles should be chest-high.
• Wear sneakers. Don’t jump rope barefoot…same issue as with jumping on concrete.  Wear good sneakers, jump on a mat or carpet and you’ll be good to go.
• When you jump, keep your hands down by your waist and arms out to the side. Don’t swing your arms, the movement should be all in the wrist.  Working on jumping really low to the ground rapidly.  Try jumping one foot, try crossing your arms, try jumping forwards and backwards.  More of a challenge?  Try to jump and swing the rope around you twice before landing.

I’m a big fan of interval training, and I apply that to jumping rope as well. Try jumping as quickly as possible for 30 seconds followed by 90 seconds of relaxed jumping.  Then do another 30 seconds of fast jumps and 90 seconds of slow jumps.  Try to keep this up for 20 minutes and let me know how your calves feel the next morning.

I’d go into all the benefits of jumping rope but I’d just be wasting your time.  It’s physical activity, and if you do it long enough you will lose weight (considering you have a decent diet).  A guy weighing 180 lbs can burn 800 calories an hour with jumping rope.  Personally I’d get bored way before an hour, but good for that guy!  My recommendation: if your house is big enough, jump rope during a TV show (doing intervals) and you’ll be well on your way to elite status.  Jump rope between sets at the gym and see if you can make it through a full workout.  Build up your stamina, get coordinated, and burn fat.

Still not convinced? Well, Rocky Balboa jumps rope, and he single-handedly took on Communist Russia with his fists and WON. What more proof do you need!  “If I can change, and you can change…then everybody can change!”  If this doesn’t get you motivated, you’re dead to me:

Rocky IV Training Montage

If you’re looking to mix it up, go get yourself a jump rope and see what you’re missing. 

DRAGOOOOOOOOOOOO!

-Steve