I’m constantly amazed at just how much my training is influenced by the people on this site. Whether you’re looking for a new piece of equipment, an unusual exercise variation or just an idea of how others approach things, you’ll enjoy these :
Gem From The Vault : Conditioning Without Trying – Walking 10,000 Steps Per Day
Scott Andrew Bird
It really doesn’t have to be complicated.- Looking At : Nov 3, 2013
Scott Andrew Bird
What’s been going on this week? Quite a lot actually.
Over to you. I’d love to hear what you think : leave your comments on the above articles, and share them with your friends/colleagues/clients and so on.
NB : If you’d like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, here’s how.
Video : Rope Climbing Alternatives
Nice one Ross.
Gymchat 222 – The Difference Between Exercise & Training (Why You Should TRAIN!) (Ryan Burgess)
A deceptively simple question – what’s the difference between exercising and training?
This week we’ll be looking closely at this subtle distinction, and how to approach things in the most effective way possible. Tackling this one is Powerlifter & Strength Coach Ryan Burgess, joined by Strongman & Personal Trainer Josh Hewett. If you’ve got questions for Ryan or Josh, just swing by the event page for this Gymchat (during the discussion itself). Details below.
Details –
Who : Powerlifter & Strength Coach Ryan Burgess and Strongman & Personal Trainer Josh Hewett
Topic : The Difference Between Exercise & Training (Why You Should TRAIN!)
When : Wednesday Nov 6, 9pm EDT (the Event page shows what time that is in your local timezone)
How : Watch the live stream, and ask questions, directly on the Event page. We’ll also post the full video shortly after the Gymchat.
See you there.
Previously : A couple of weeks ago we held Gymchat 220 : High Intensity Training – HIT (with Chris Lutz and Josh Hewett). Great discussion.
If you missed the live stream (or just want to go over a particular point again), you can watch the entire video here.
Coming Up : we’ve got several fantastic discussions lined up for the next few months, details shortly. One of those is an area I’m intrigued by personally, the Future of Fitness. Fascinating topic.
To give you an idea of what we’ll be talking about and why it’s essential (especially if you’re a fitness professional yourself, or planning to be), here’s a quick primer. And if you’d like to join us on the panel, just drop Josh a line. We’d love to hear from you.
Tip of the Week : Bending Steel = Increased Strength Endurance
Each week we publish a number of tips and techniques via Twitter, Google+, the blog; and now the newsletter. Wherever you are, there’s always a way to improve what you’re doing.
A friend of mine asked me over the weekend why I bend things. It’s partly because it’s fun, and partly, well, I’ll let Adam explain.
There are many great reasons for bending things, as ‘Unbreakable‘ Adam Glass notes in the article Why Bend Steel? Apart from the simple ‘because it’s downright fun‘ :
The increase in strength and power naturally will carry over to an increase in your endurance. Anyone who has bent a nail will tell you the first time they bent it was so tiring. I have watched people sweat bullets bending their first respectable nail. As time goes on you gain huge reserves of power. A personal testament to this level of power for me was October 2007 when I bent 150 60D nails in one hour using the double under (DU) grip. That represented a massive improvement from Jan 2007, when bending 10-15 nails left my hands extremely fatigued.
Good stuff.
Revisiting : Lift the Blob
Quick update on the Lift the Blob package we mentioned recently – fantastic collection.
I’d love to hear how you go with it, when it comes to tackling this challenging feat you really can’t go past Lift the Blob. Superb.
Exercise of the Week : Sideways Barbell Lunge
29 things not enough for you? Nick Nilsson takes a look at a 30th – the Sideways Barbell Lunge. Good stuff.
Incidentally, if you’d like to get in touch regarding this or any other aspect of strength, you can contact me here. Look forward to hearing from you.
Kettlebell Exercise Demonstrations & Tutorials
We’ve looked at a lot of kettlebell exercises and variations over the years – in the form of tips, tutorials and demonstrations.
Where do you find them all? Right here – a complete list of Kettlebell Exercise Demonstrations & Tutorials.
Enjoy.
A Daily Dose
Love this stuff? Same here. If you’re looking for a daily dose of strength-training goodness, grab the Straight to the Bar Daily.
Absolutely free.
Free Downloads from the Strength Kit
I recently added a number of resources to the Straight to the Bar Strength Kit, and as a Strength & Fitness Newsletter subscriber you’re more than welcome to download as many of them as you like. Several great eBooks, podcasts and videos – all absolutely free.
Just head over here, save them to your hard-drive, and dive in.
Good stuff.
NB : This is an ever-changing list. If you’d like to put your own work in front of a fantastic strength-focussed audience, let me know.