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 : Jaw Lifting – What, Why and How
Ryan Pitts
If the Gymchat last week got you fired up for a spot of Old-Time Strongman training, check this out. Ryan discusses Jaw Lifting.
Looking At : Mar 2, 2014
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’re keen to do more writing in 2014 and would like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, here’s how.
Video : Three Person Salmon Ladder Gaps
Looking for a serious Salmon Ladder challenge? Grab a couple of your training partners and have a go at this. Superb.
Gymchat 238 – Fitness Business Strategies (Matt Palfrey)
If you’ve been involved with the fitness industry for any length of time, chances are you’ve thought about setting up your own gym. Perhaps you’ve already got one.
Either way – how do you promote it? Attract new customers? Learn about what works, and what doesn’t?
This week we’ll be discussing this area in detail, answering all of the above and a whole lot more. Joining us is Strength & Conditioning Coach Matt Palfrey, together with Personal Trainer (and Strength Athlete) Josh Hewett. Fantastic.
NB : We’d love to hear your questions and comments. If there’s a particular subject you’d like Matt and Josh to address, just swing by the event page for this Gymchat (during the discussion itself) and jump in the Q&A.
And if you’d like to point your friends/colleagues to the discussion, just use the ‘share‘ button at the top of that page. The more the merrier.
Details –
Who : Strength & Conditioning Coach Matt Palfrey, joined by Personal Trainer (and Strength Athlete) Josh Hewett
Topic : Fitness Business Strategies
When : Wednesday Mar 5, 9:00pm 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 : In Gymchat 237 we discussed Old-Time Strongman Training (with ‘Physical Culture Renaissance Man‘ Logan Christopher and Personal Trainer (and Strength Athlete) Josh Hewett). Great conversation.
If you missed the live stream (or just want to go over a particular point again), you can watch the entire video here.
Tip of the Week: Beginner Neck-Building Program
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.
This tip comes to us from the obscenely strong Mike ‘The Machine‘ Bruce, and is a snippet from his superb article Building A Neck Of Steel. Take a look.
Neck work – whether you’re a beginner, or have been training for years – doesn’t need to be that complicated. And if you’re new to the area of neck strengthening, this is a great place to start.
Over to Mike :
Now that’s a neck harness lift.Following is a beginner program to help get you started from Pencil Neck to Neck of Steel.
- Neck Curls on a flat bench with weight 1-2 sets of 20-30 repetitions
- Neck Harness work [same as above]
- Side of Neck on a flat bench [same as above]
Do this every other day for the first month. Then you can increase the workload to every day you train. Or increase the weighted repetitions to 5 sets of 50 repetitions. Once you can attain 100 straight repetitions in the 3 exercises then it is time to increase the weight.
Good stuff.
Re-Reading : Görner the Mighty
This is one of the books that Logan mentioned in the Gymchat last week – Görner the Mighty. Good stuff.
Although I was lucky enough to read the original book many years ago, I’m extremely keen to dive in to this version – the 2012 reprint – as soon as possible. I suspect that things will look quite different now; after training for a number of years.
Görner the Mighty.
Quick update on the Hip Thruster we mentioned recently – fantastic thing.
Rather than trying to explain how it works, here it is in action :
Good stuff Bret, looks great.
Exercise of the Week : Lateral Squat Walk
It may look a little strange, but it definitely works. The Lateral Squat Walk.
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.
Giving
If you’ve been training for a while, gradually cleaning up your diet, no doubt you’ve experienced the amazing power of transformation. It’s a tremendous feeling.
If you’re ready to give someone else a hand to transform their own lives – through education, sharing equipment, financial help – take a look at the full list of organisations on the Giving page. Cheers.