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 :

How good is bodyweight training for MMA?
Mike Jones | Follow @ElitesportsMMA
Over to Mike.

Looking At : Nov 28, 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 : Why Strength Endurance is Crucial for Performance (The Bioneer)

Very interesting idea – definitely one to consider making use of in your training. Personally, I favour both the drop-set approach he discusses, as well as a spot of bodyweight work.

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 132 we discussed How to Find a Personal Trainer with Personal Trainer Personal Trainer Kirk Fontaine. Great conversation.
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.

Checking Out : Quad Ultra Hand Grips by Velites (Quad Hand Grips)

These look great. The Velites Quad Ultra Hand Grips are simply hand grips for hooking on to a bar – think barbell, kettlebell or chinning bar. If you’re unacquainted, the video below will show them in action. As they take the grip out of the equation, they make a lot of high-rep work much more plausible. Think high-volume training, or kettlebell & CrossFit competitions. A little video :
The Velites Quad Ultra Hand Grips.

Tip of the Week : Use Checklists in your Training

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.

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Checklists are one of those things that seem so simple as to be almost pointless. Not really worth the effort. However, they’re very powerful things indeed.
The basic logic behind using a checklist is pretty straightforward. As Adam Stoffa notes in the article Checklists and Complex Problems :

An example from training might be properly warming up. Everyone knows it’s foolish to engage in physical training without warming up first, but with time pressure, competing interests, or environmental stress, this step occasionally gets skipped. The risks associated with skipping this step, are significant. Pulled muscles are a major setback to a training program. When you balance the interests involved, saving a few minutes versus suffering a major setback, the risk associated with skipping this key step is unacceptably high. Therefore, item number 1 on your checklist could be:

1. Complete Warm Up Exercises

And yes, although it looks almost laughably simple, this absolutely works. The checklist approach is very highly recommended indeed.

Unlock Your Hips, Unlock Your Squat

I get a lot of questions regarding the impact of ‘unlocking your hips‘ on heavy squatting. Rick Kaselj goes into it in plenty of detail in the ‘Unlock Your Hip Flexors‘ program; and I’ve also posted a brief video below which demonstrates/explains some of the exercises.
Both (working with Ryan, and Rick’s program) are highly recommended. And as always, we love hearing your feedback – if you sample any of the above exercises or the ‘Unlock Your Hip Flexors‘ program, we’d love to hear about it.

Exercise Feat of the Week : The Atacama Crossing

Via The Adventure Blog : As ultramarathons go, they don’t get much more demanding than the Racing the Planet series. Take a look at the next leg (beginning today) – the Atacama crossing. To keep up with what’s happening, there’s a live webcam and regular blogging from the camp. Good stuff. NB : if you’re intrigued by the idea of running an ultramarathon yourself, check out the article Backyard Ultramarathons Push The Limits Of Running – great summary of the potential benefits of tackling such a challenge.

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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.

Fitness Reading For The Week : Vaccine: How the Breakthrough of a Generation Fought Covid-19 (Joe Miller, Ugur Sahin, Özlem Türeci, John Sackville)

It’ll come as no surprise that we discuss a lot of fitness-related books; on this site as well as the various networks noted in the sidebar. Vaccine is a thorough look into the history of recent events – specifically that of the mRNA vaccines. How they work, why they were selected and the possible future uses of this incredible technology. Incidentally, I’ve got an evergrowing list of ‘books to read‘, and I’m always looking to add to it. Suggestions welcome. There’s also a list of our all-time fitness suggestions over on Goodreads. Dive on in.