Gem From The Vault : Glossary – Strength Training EquipmentScott Andrew Bird
What’s what?
Looking At : Apr 30, 2023Scott 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 : Hangboard Training 2 Times Per Day For 2 Years (Emil Abrahamsson)
Very interesting approach, and some wonderful explanations.
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 219 we discussed Assessing Current Fitness Trends with Personal Trainer Adam Klymkiw and Strongman & Personal Trainer Josh Hewett. Great conversation.
And if you missed it the first time (or just want to go over a particular point again), check out the full video over on Josh’s Youtube channel :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTf_d6FSzSc.
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 : Veo Cam 2 (AI Camera For Sports Videography)
Almost.
Was chatting recently with a friend about AI cameras in the gym and on the field, and he pointed to this – the Veo Cam 2. A ‘set and forget’ videocamera for team sports.
The video below will detail the operation of the camera itself. As for potential gym uses, I suspect there’ll be a couple of offerings within the next year or two.
The Veo Cam 2.
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 : Buying a Power Rack – Determining the width you’ll need.
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 following a discussion I had over the weekend (I was helping a friend choose a power rack), and is a snippet from the article ‘Buyers’ Guide : the Power Rack‘. Determining the width you’ll need.
Although the width of a barbell never changes (within one type, that is – standard bars are about a foot shorter than their Olympic counterparts), the width of racks vary from brand to brand. The rack’s minimum width will depend largely on what you’re going to do with it.
Sumo squats and rack pulls will take the most room; somewhere around 40″ would be an absolute minimum, but your best bet is to measure your own squat (outside one foot to outside the other).
If you intend to bench press in the rack, or use the bench as a seat for other exercises (such as the overhead work I mentioned earlier), make sure the bench fits. If you’re buying them both at the same time, great. Test them out.
One more thing to note with the bench inside the rack – if you plan to use dumbbells from the bench, make sure there’s plenty of room to drop the dumbbells once they get heavy. Oh, and something to protect the floor (in the drop zone) is always a good idea – a couple of rubber mats will do nicely.
Good stuff.
Exercise Feat Of The Week : Car Flipping
Via Napalm’s Corner (fast becoming a great source for all things Kaz) : the Car Turn Over event from the 1989 World’s Strongest Men contest (later renamed to World’s Strongest Man). Just when you thought tyre flipping was challenging.
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/Listening For The Week : ‘Buying Time’ (by Frank Swain)
It’ll come as no surprise that we discuss a lot of fitness-related books, courses & podcasts; on this site as well as the various networks noted in the sidebar.
‘Buying Time’ is a wonderful podcast (6 episodes) on Liz Parrish’ quest to cure ageing. Fascinating area.
Incidentally, I’m always looking to add to the ‘books to read‘ list. If you’ve come across something which you’d love everyone else to check out, drop me a line.
There’s also a list of our all-time fitness suggestions over there. Dive on in.