Savage Movement of the Week—Pull!

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Don't just hang around, grab a branch and PULL!

What it Is

This week we are using a fun variation of the Pull-up, the Commando Pull-up.  Time to take it up a notch for those oft-neglected Pulling muscles!  This exercise is resourceful in that any beam, bar or branch can serve as equipment and the grip used often let’s athletes get more repetitions than standard pull-ups. This is due to the fact that the grip is more similar to the Chin-up, thus allowing greater use of the biceps to assist in pulling.

How it’s Done

The athlete utilizes most any type of overhead apparatus, be it a bar, a rope, tree branch, etc.  Grab the implement with both hands.  Be sure to keep the shoulders in socket (ie, do not overstretch at the bottom of the movement.  The arms will go straight, but keep your shoulders away from your ears).  Pull your body up, moving the head to one side as you ascend.  Lower under control, returning to the starting position.  On the next repetition, alternate which side the head goes to.  Do NOT utilize momentum, we DO NOT KIP here!  Alternating sides is important, as another interesting aspect to this movement is that at the top of the rep, the body is unevenly loaded–so it is important to work both sides evenly! 

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Commando Pull-ups x20. 

Advanced athletes will try to do all the reps in one set (or as few sets as possible), focusing on smooth technique and adding a one-second pause at both the top and bottom of the movement to eliminate any momentum. For athletes that struggle with Pull-ups, two options exist.  Option one, spread the reps out as much as possible.  Maybe you get 3 Pull-ups here, then 3 more later on, 2 later, etc. You might do it every couple of minutes.  I know some people who do a couple every hour on the hour, until they reach their target number.  The key here is to never go to failure, do only good reps, “leaving a little in the tank” to come back and get more.  Option two, if you struggle with Pull-ups (ie, you can’t do even one), try the Dead-Hang.  Simply get into the start position of a Pull-up and hang as long as you can.  Again, be sure to keep you shoulders set, so that your muscles get the work they need. 

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Savage Movement of the Week—Jump!

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A young athlete demonstrates the difficult transition from the "bottom push-up" position to the "bottom squat" position of the Burpee. Well Done!

What it Is

This week we are using an awesome Jump, one of the king’s of explosive movement—the Burpee! Done correctly, this exercise demands that the entire body moves explosively, training both a lower and upper body “jump” movement! Also, it can be used as strictly a power movement, or manipulated for use as a power endurance exercise—both wonderful ways to utilize this Savage Movement! Remember, having strength is great, but as an athlete, you need to be able to express that strength powerfully, with speed of movement. A Savage Athlete is an explosive one!

How it’s Done

The athlete begins in a standing position. The athlete squats down, placing the hands on the ground, before kicking the legs out behind them to “catch” themselves in the bottom of a push-up position. The athlete then explosively pushes themselves up, simultaneously tucking the knees in toward the chest, in order to land on their feet in the bottom of a squat. The athlete then continues the movement by jumping up into the air as high as possible, landing in an athletic position that will allow them to start the movement all over again by immediately dropping into the next repetition. The entire sequence is performed as close to one continuous and explosive movement as the athlete can suitably perform. As soon as this movement becomes segmented into different parts and ceases being performed with power, it no longer serves its primary function! Be sure to use a rep or time goal that allows you to maintain the explosiveness of the exercise!

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Burpee x 50

Advanced athletes will strive to complete the total all in one set, or in as few as possible, resting where needed. Beginners, may look to break it up into smaller sets, 10 sets of 5 for example, so as to maintain the explosiveness of each repetition. Time how long it takes and compete against yourself. Be fast, be explosive, be SAVAGE!

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Savage Movement of the Week—Climb!

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There is no escaping the intensity of the Zombie Crawl!

What it Is

This week we are using a very demanding horizontal Climb exercise, the Zombie Crawl! No, you don’t have to be dead to do it, though some people end up feeling like they are when they are done with it! This is a wonderful workout for those who have trouble with pull-ups, as this climb is all about hauling your bodyweight with the upper-back. While it is not against gravity, which means you can get more quality repetitions, it is against friction, making it very demanding!

How it’s Done

The athlete begins laying chest-down on the ground with the legs completely straight. The legs are to remain this way through the entire movement! No cheating with the legs, they provide drag but are to do none of the work! The athlete reaches out in front of their body with both arms simultaneously and places them against the climbing surface (grass/turf/concrete/gym floor/etc.). Against some surfaces, you will have to apply a greater degree of downward pressure than others, but this downward force is only to give you a grip with which to pull your body across the ground. You pull with both arms simultaneously, dragging your body toward your hands. How far you travel with each pull varies by individual, strength and flexibility. Find the distance that works best for your body type. Some will utilize quick, short distance pulls while others use slower, longer distance pulls. This process is repeated over and over until the desired distance is covered. As I mentioned, this is a very demanding horizontal climb!

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Zombie Crawl x 50 yards 

Advanced athletes will strive to complete the distance all in one set. Beginners, or athletes that have a weakness in the Climb/Pull movements may want to break this up into smaller sets. You can also race others or keep times and compete against yourself!

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Train For Somethin’!

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After finishing the Warrior Dash in Logan, OH!

I’ve said it before, there is just no better way to set and achieve goals than to set yourself a very specific challenge to overcome.

A performance based goal. 

Wether that is completing a 5k, sprint triatholon, playing a new sport, or deadlifting 450 for 20 consecutive reps. 

Set yourself something very specific to train for!

You have to have that goal at the forefront of your mind every time you workout. What are you training for?  When you are starting to have trouble wanting to go workout, ask yourself, why are you doing it? 

If you don’t care to go, maybe you need to change your goal to something more meaningful.  That will influence and help structure your workouts as well, so that you see that every bit of hard work you put into what you do, directly translates to improved performance and brings you that much closer to your goal! It’ll really up the intensity of what you are doing and contribute to more rapid and specific results!

That is all part of the Savage Mindset, training with Violent Effort to reach your goals.  Not allowing yourself be deterred from success.  A major part of the equation is having a goal worth working for. 

Ask yourself–what do YOU want to ACHIEVE?

Now get out there,

and don’t just train,

GET SAVAGE!

Savage Movement of the Week—Fight!

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Fight! movements can be taxing, but FUN!

What it Is

 

This week we are using a fun Fight! movement, Sledgehammer Swings! This movement, done correctly, puts the whole body to work! The upper body grips, holds and swings. The core and hips provide rotational force and power while the lower body provides a stable platform to swing from and apply force against another object. A weak lower body would find someone being moved away from the target at point of contact. In other words, you would swing and hit the object, but the force of the blow would move you backwards! Force your whole body to work!

How it’s Done

There are multiple swing technique and variations, but the basic princibles are similar. First, the athlete firmly grasps the sledgehammer. Next, the athlete assumes a strong stance with feet aproximately shoulder-width apart and firmly planted on the ground. The athlete maintains good posture throughout the movement by keeping the chest up and eyes focused on the target. The athlete ensures that the core musculature is tight and “engaged”, no slouching or excessive bending or leaning under strain is allowed as it would place a great deal more stress on the spine and prevent the muscles from being able to work optimaly. Now, with violent effort, swing the hammer and smash your target! (Old tires work great for this, just be sure not to hit yourself on the rebound!) Swing overhead, diagonally, one-handed or two, it doesn’t matter, just put your whole body into each blow! This is an excellent exercise to put your explosive power into practice!

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

200 Swings.  Advanced athletes may look to this all in one set. Use as many sets as necessary to achieve the 200 rep total, again, focusing on proper technique. Beginning Savage’s may want to lower the total to 50. Again, play with a variety of techniques, hit hard and have fun doing it!

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Savage Movement of the Week—Push!

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Sled PUSH!

What it Is

This week we are using an awesome total body Push movement, the Sled Push! It’s simple, effective and fun! This total body movement generates power from the ground up, requiring all the muscles of the body to work together to move the sled or other object across the ground. This movement can also be done as the infamous Truck Push as well, the movements are the same!

How it’s Done

The athlete begins in the oft mentioned athletic position, feet apart, chest up, knees and hips bent. The athlete has drag handles in each hand OR places his hands firmly on the object to be pushed in front of him with the arms straight. From this position, the athlete drives forcefully with the legs, taking care to keep the whole body “tight” and in-line so that all the force applied against the ground is transmitted directly to the object for forward movement. Relaxing during the movement can result in the object staying put and the athlete being moved backwards, or worse, an injury! Once you get the object moving, strive to keep it in motion for the duration of the set or distance!

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Sled Push x 100 yards 

Advanced athletes may look to do perform this with progressively larger/heavier objects while striving to complete the distance all in one set. There are also other variations, the aforementioned Truck Push, or adding a chest press to the movement as well…lots of possibilities!

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

The Economy of Fitness

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A healthy balance of BOTH nutrition and exercise will help you achieve your goals!

I am going to use an over-simplified analogy to communicate a very basic and foundational truth about living a healthy lifestyle. Calories are your money—but in this economy, you WANT a deficit. Horde up too many calories and don’t spend them, you’ll end up with a surplus. Living in the nation that leads the world in obesity, we are well aware what that surplus looks like.

Now, if you want to avoid or get rid of the surplus-fat, you need to spend some of those calories. How? Physical activity, you know, working out! And no, working out one Tuesday in February doesn’t give you a year long excuse: “I tried working out, it didn’t work”.

NO.

YOU didn’t work.

If an individual spends 30 days in a row cramming in a surplus of calories, how many days do you think it will take to undue it—to spend all the surplus?

At least 30!

Odds are, much more.

Why? Because we don’t run as big a deficits as we do surplus! It’s nothing for someone to regularly consume over 1000 additional calories on a daily basis, it’s much more difficult to run a deficit like that with the same consistency. It’s laughable when someone who spends YEARS storing up unwanted weight expects it to be gone in a few weeks when they decide to get “committed”. I guess we can thank The Biggest Loser for that.

New Flash: Most ordinary people undertaking a healthy, sustainable lifestyle change will NOT regularly post a double digit weight loss every week.

Note, I know for some, they prefer to strictly use diet to lose weight.

This is inefficient.

Many reach a point of stagnation in this approach because their metabolism can actually slow down as their body adapts to the reduced caloric intake. The optimal approach is BOTH a reduction in calories consumed AND an increase in calories expended.

This applies to those who workout hard as well. Feel like your workouts aren’t quite getting you the results you feel you should have? You may be working like a world-class athlete, but are you eating like one? Are you taking care of your recovery and restoration in the same way a world-class athlete does?

There is a careful balance in the Economy of Fitness, and that optimal point comes from BOTH watching how much is consumed AND managing how much is spent.

Now get out there,

and don’t just train,

Get Savage!

Image: cjansuebsri / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Savage Movement of The Week—Throw!

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Shot-Put Thow--a Total body, explosive, rotational movement!

 

What it Is

This week we are using one of my favorite Throws, the Shot-Put Throw! It’s simple, effective and fun! This total body movement generates power from the ground up and also uses the often under worked aspect of rotational strength. It is also effective for training the entire body to work together as a unit. Remember, in athletics, it is not solely about strength, but also your ability to express strength in an explosive and dynamic manner. Being able to slowly push a heavy weight away from your body is one thing, but being able to quickly move from one place to another and forcefully push something away at a moments notice is completely different. Throws are one of the elements that help to develop these qualities.

How it’s Done

The athlete begins in the oft mentioned athletic position, feet apart, chest up, knees and hips bent. The thrown object is loaded on one side, supported on the base of that hand. Starting in a low athletic position, the athlete then forcefully pushes against the ground with the feet, while driving the hips in a rotational manner (like a baseball swing) toward the direction of the throw—while simultaneously pushing the object with the support hand. The goal is to cover as much ground as possible with each throw. The whole movement is done explosively and violently. The hand will start fairly low compared to the end position—but you want to aim neither up or down—your goal is optimal distance, which is achieved at approx. a 45 degree angle. Use your whole body! A common mistake is for most people to under utilize the work of the lower body. Start in a low enough position that you can use the legs to help drive the throw! Be sure and utilize both sides of your body—this is most effectively accomplished by alternating sides with each throw.

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Shot-Put Throw x 20 total throws 

Advanced athletes may look to do perform this with progressively larger/heavier objects or weights—however, as the goal is more about distance than weight, DON’T use something that causes the speed of movement to decrease significantly, you want to train explosively!

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Savage Movement of The Week—Lift!

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The exact technique is not important on this Lift, provided it's safe and the object starts on the ground and ends overhead!

What it Is

This week we are using a diverse Lift variation, the Overhead Lift. The distinction between this and the more simple Overhead Press is that each repetition or lift begins on the ground. This makes it a total body exercise, heaving an object from the ground and ending the movement with the object directly overhead. In fact, there a several exercises that are different methods and variations of accomplishing this particular lift, the Snatch and the Clean and Press are two such examples. As you can see, there is a lot of freedom in this exercise to explore your body in lifting an object from the ground to overhead—it is a true test of strength. In fact in some cultures it was used as exactly that! Obviously, this is a movement that is excellent for developing total body strength and explosive power.

How it’s Done

As I mentioned, there are actually many ways to accomplish the exercise provided it follows the rules of starting on the ground and ending overhead, but here are some general guidelines. The athlete begins by standing over the intended object. Be sure to have the hips lower than the head. When lifting the object, be sure to use the lower body and maintain a stable spine. The head and hips should rise at the same rate. At no point should the head start to go closer to the ground while the hips continue upward—if this happens, immediately release the weight! When lifting stones, the start position is slightly different—depending on the size of the stone. A particularly large stone (or other odd-object) may require shelving the stone on to the legs. This is done by contouring the body to the stone and hugging it tight to the chest. The athlete then “rocks” back to the feet while trying to “hug”/pull the stone on to the “shelf” created by the upper legs in the bottom deep squat position. From here it is a matter of keeping the stone tight to the chest as the athlete stands. The athlete then performs a movement similar to a Jerk, in that they forcefully drop their hips as they extend their arms to get the object overhead and finish in the standing position.

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Overhead Lift x 5 total attempts 

Advanced athletes may look to do perform this progressively larger/heavier objects or weights or explore one-handed variations. Beginners should not focus on the amount of weight moved, but rather, explore the different ways of getting the object overhead before concerning themselves with how much they can lift.

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!

Savage Movement of The Week—Carry!

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A solid handstand position must be mastered before adding this Carry variation to your Savage toolbox!

What it Is

This week we are using a fun Carry variation, the Lateral Handstand Walk. While certainly different than a traditional Carry movement, it shares many similarities with the Overhead Carry, except here the load is your bodyweight—carried on your hands—and there is a lot of core engagement in maintaining your balance. I also feel that this exercise is great preventative maintenance for the shoulders of any serious athlete. Give this one a try!

How it’s Done

The athlete begins by kicking up to a handstand with a wall for support. Remember to only allow the heels to rest on the wall—and only as needed. The arms are straight and the palms are pressed into the floor for stabilization. Keep the core tight throughout the movement. Begin walking! When moving right, you would bring the left hand to the right, then take the right hand out, trying to move the whole body as a unit as you go. Repeat for the designated distance. If performing multiple sets, be sure to alternate which direction you start the movement. DO NOT perform to muscle failure, the risks outweigh the benefits. Be sure to keep your technique solid, when it starts to break down, terminate the set.

What to Do

Sometime this week, at the end of a regular workout or on an off-day after a brief warm-up, perform the following:

Lateral Handstand Walk x 4 sets Max distance. 

Advanced athletes may look to do perform this with no wall assistance or as little as possible. Beginners should not be discouraged if they struggle with this movement, it is a Heavy exercise and takes a fair amount of practice to get used to moving on your hands. This movement will be helpful in preparing a beginner athlete to work up to handstand push-ups as they get used to bearing their weight on their hands. Remember, the focus needs to be on perfect form, with as much rest in between sets as necessary to complete the activity.

Have fun,

train safe,

Be Savage!