Gem From The Vault : DIY: Home-Made Gym Equipment
Scott Andrew Bird | Follow @scottbird
Time for a trip to the hardware store.Looking At : Mar 21, 2021
Scott Andrew Bird | Follow @scottbird
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 a little fitness writing and would like to submit your own piece for Straight to the Bar, get in touch.
Video : New Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Awesome Features (Lew Later)
Looks like both the upcoming Apple Watch and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 are close to incorporation of blood glucose sensors. Fantastic.
Gymchat 278 – TBA
We’re still finalising the details for this week’s discussion. I’ll post them on the blog (and Twitter, Facebook etc) shortly. In the meantime, take a look at some of the previous episodes of the show – (there’s an example below, and a full list here). And if you’ve got any questions or comments on the various topics discussed, we’d love to hear them. Just leave a note below the video.Previously : In Gymchat 227 we discussed The Tempo Matrix with Strength Coach Karsten Jensen, 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’ll find the entire video here. NB : if you’d like to take part in a future episode – either as an interviewee, or as a guest host – just drop us a line. Love hearing how everyone else trains.
Ever Tried Kettlebells?
If you've seen people using them but never taken the plunge yourself, here are the ones I use personally. You can also pick up a book/DVD/course if you want to learn how to put them to work.
Tip of the Week : Making (and Using) a Fat Bar
Each week we publish a number of tips and techniques via Twitter, the blog; and 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 Max Shank, in the form of a video from the article The Fat Bar. Take a look.
This video shows the bar in action. To read how it helps, and how to make one; head over to the article The Fat Bar. Nice one.
Over to Max :
Good stuff.
Checking Out : BP Trace (Smartwatch-Based Blood Pressure Monitor)
Looks great.The BP Trace is the same pairing as the BP Doctor – a smartwatch with an expanding wrist cuff, to tackle the blood pressure readings. In this case, the device also offers an autosampling option – it will automatically take readings at definable intervals. Nice one. What’s more, the companion app offers export functionality. I’ll check it out once they become available, but this particular functionality sounds ideal. I love the idea of being able to track everything (in terms of my own health & fitness), and store it in my own software. The BP Trace.
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 : Double Leg Tutorial

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.