Mountain View Moves

Today Aussy and I went hiking up part of the Appalachian Trail to two hikes called Pickin's Nose and Albert Mountain.  At the top of Albert Mtn, there is a huge 360 degree overlook of the Smokey and the Blue Ridge Mtns in North Carolina and a Fire Watch Tower. So, while up at the top of the mountain (about 5400 feet above sea level), I thought why not pull a move (nothing fancy, see above). I wish I could train there all the time. The views were breathtaking and inspiring. 

Floor training for Iron Cross

I have constructed a suspension trainer out of some rope from Home Depot. I hope to eventually, in the not so near future because it's fucking hard, work up to being able to complete and hold an Iron Cross (see above, made to look easy) using my suspension trainer. In order to work toward this goal I have started some floor training with cables that is helping me, I think, strengthen and coordinate the muscles needed to pull such a move off. See one of the things about this move is that you have outward and downward force needed and generated by both arms. Oh, and you are supporting yourself in the air. So the possibility of one arm pushing harder, faster, further out, less straight, etc etc is very high. What I have been doing is to stand on the floor and take two (independent cables from an overhead pull down machine) in either hand. I then push my arms to iron cross position and do downward presses. At the bottom of the move, I do what looks like a standing pulley dip. Then out again. OK, easy enough, right? Now try it on 1 leg. I like to hold 1-leg out in the L position to strengthen and tighten my core. I sometimes even work that into the move, doing forward leg raises in between reps. Being on 1 leg forces you as I mention in my other post to stabilize muscles that you are not used to using. In fact, you might find, if you use heavy enough weight that you are actively trying to stabilize the downward and outward force generated by each arm independently to keep you from placing that other leg back on the ground.  I like it, even if people look at me strangely while doing it. 

And, if you wanted to bump it up a notch, try doing it while kneeling on a swiss ball, standing on a core trainer, or a bosu ball, etc. Core stability - look out!

Suspension Training

OK, so I've talked about endlessly, but heretofore have been too embarrassed to pull out my home made suspension trainer. Yes. I am cheap and chose to make my own as opposed to purchase the $150 TRX model. The one for purchase is way way cooler, but still, I'm an academic and don't get paid enough to purchase such frivolous items for training.

At any rate, this morning my back was feeling loose and generally pain-free so I decided what the hell. I jogged over to the Locker room and grabbed my rope. It could not have been more than a fraction of a second before half the dudes on the weight floor were looking at me like "what in the F is that guy doing?" Then I started tying it up to the pull-up bar (actually the cross bar for the cable cross-over machine, and i got looks that I could only interpret as fears I was going to hang myself, and let's be honest that thought has crossed my mind from time to time at the gym). At any rate, I go ahead and string the damn thing up. The trainer, William, who 1st introduced me to the device came over and gave me a look and said, "you were serious! you built your own? Of course I did. That's what I do.

The images above are of my device and it works like a charm. To make it I purchased 25 feet of 1/2-3/4 inch thick polypropylene rope from my local hardware store, Home Depot. It cost about $12. Then at each end of the rope I tied a slip knot and a safety know (thank goodness for the climbing training). That's it.

How to use it: tie a prusik knot on a high surface (e.g., the pull up bar, the top of your Smith machine, the cable cross-over machine, etc). To adjust the height simply add more rope to the prusik knot. It is quite important that the handles hang about even - they don't need to be exactly even, but they should be close. Easy enough.

Here's how I used it today: This was all after my normal workout and my embarrassment waned... ugh I am tired. First, I did suspended chest press. Second I did push-up with knee tucks. Third, lastly, and most excitingly I did dips! Dips were a killer because unlike the dip bar, the ropes moves back and forth and you are forced to engage so many muscles (core mostly) to stabilize yourself.

At the end of the day, I can overlook the odd views I get from the mirror muscle gang, and my own embarrassment and I will use this bad boy a few days a week. The other good thing about it is that it can be used by all levels. Adjusting the suspension is literally just moving your legs in or out. Easy enough. I am taking it with me to the mountains this weekend and Aussie and I might try and attach it to a tree to get a little mountain air workout in.

Body weight circuit with suspension training

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wUNZ5nr0EI&feature=related

Bird legged does not equal bird brained

A fitness trainer at EFC, Liverpool, Lee, turned me on to a new trend in training - working out on 1-leg. I thought it was a moronic idea and was extremely hesitant to even try it. I did, however, try it and as one might reckon, gathered some rather odd looks from the mirror muscle guys, as well as the ladies. What came of it was a noticeable, rather remarkable increase in core strength. See standing on 1-leg forces your body to deal with gravity in a whole new way: one in which it is not used to doing. You no longer can rely on your other lower limb to throw you through moves to completion, but rather you fight constantly with the seriously possible idea that you are going to fall over. See, unlike birds who use 1-legged standing for a completely different purpose humans are not used to standing on 1-leg, except for those brief instances between steps. Try it. I am sure you won't be disappointed. You can do almost any exercise on 1-leg if the exercise typically starts from a standing position. For example, biceps curl, overhead triceps raises, should press with dumbbells, and lateral, front and or rear deltoid raises.  

If you can already balance 1-legged while doing exercises, try taking it up a notch and add a core stability device (bosu ball, swiss ball, or core trainer). I find this type of thing really helps my sense of balance and helps me to not have to think about it when doing the gymnastics type exercises.

V-seat training

I can now hold the L-seat for a decent period of time (i.e. several seconds) from the ground or while doing pull/chin-ups. I have been trying to help my wife get the L-seat. It is fun watching her train up to it because it reminds me of the steps I had to take to get it myself. It's a long and hard journey, actually... but she has just about got it!

Anyhow, I have decided to progress a bit in the seated positions. In addition to my normal practice, which has been halted by my back injury. At any rate, I hope to train toward the V-seat and ultimately the manna (see images).

Also here's another cool link about training. 

Get Inverted

The benefits of being inverted (e.g., in yoga postures) is hotly debated with the yoga community suggesting that it could be beneficial for everything from the nervous system to treating depression. The scientific community has provided less than stellar support for these hypotheses, however they have not been systematically tested with tight controls, nor have there been many attempts to replicate such findings. 

What's my take? I like being inverted and do feel the benefits. Let me summarize below. 

Being inverted demands a core strength and stability that being on two legs does not. You need to balance your entire body in an entirely new fashion. This is most uncomfortable for a lot of us, but it's that discomfort which leads to progress in training muscles that you otherwise would never use. Now to be honest you might not give a shit, because drinking beer does not demand use of those muscle, right. On the contrary my friend. Imagine being able to do a keg stand without being held up; talk about getting laid! Oops, there I go again, I meant drunk. :-)

Seriously, though, being inverted trains a new set of muscle groups that most of are not used to training. I have personally noticed the benefits in my other training: stability, strength, etc. In addition to the training benefits, I find it quite relaxing to be upside down. You can feel the rush of blood to your head. You can feel the blood rushing from your legs. My yoga teacher, Debbie, used to tell me that it sent good energy to your heart and brain. You know I don't know if I believe her from a strictly scientific perspective, but something about the way she said it, she sold it and I felt it. My wife too. At any rate, if you only try to get inverted once a month, once a week, it ought to be fun and I'd be interested in hearing if it benefits your workout. Here is a nice image to show some, but not all the inverted positions possible.