Gem From The Vault : Sleeping On The Job
Scott Andrew Bird | Follow @scottbird
Time for a nap.- Looking At : Apr 18, 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 : How Often Should A 50 Year Old Work Out? (Live Anabolic)
As a member of the ‘over 50‘ group myself, I tend to agree with these suggestions. How about you? If you’re also in that age bracket, is there anything you’d add/change?
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 231 we discussed Fat Loss 101 with Online Fitness Coach Vic Magary and Personal Trainer 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.
Checking Out : SKINNERS 2.0 (Hybrid Footwear)
These look ideal for a deadlift or three. SKINNERS 2.0 are somewhere between socks and shoes. Think of the sort of footwear you’d love to wear in the gym. Breathable, rollable and machine washable, these are perfect combination. A little video to show you what I mean :SKINNERS 2.0.
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.
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 of the Week : Easy Does It
If you’ve got any friends or family members who say ‘Oh, I’m too old for that‘ when you ask them about joining you in the gym; send them over to Easy Does It. Serious exercise for those over 55.
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.