Two important factors when choosing a foam roller for SMR

Two important factors when choosing a foam roller for SMR are density and diameter. 

Self myofascial rolling is a great way to relieve tension, stress and discomfort from knots, tender spots and adhesions in your muscles. 

It’s recommended for your warmup and cool down for each workout in addition to other mobility and flexibility exercises. 

View my video 

Use this link to get yourself a good foam roller. 

Get Your Foam Roller Here

Workout Considerations for the Fall and Winter Seasons

First fall workout uniform of the season. 

Heading into the arena to face the beast on a chilly dark night. 

From high heat and humidity to chilled coolness in the blink of an eye. 

The change in weather calls for changes in workout variables. 

Warming up and stretching are very important.

Warm ups will take me a little longer in the fall and winter months. 

I will lift a little lighter as it get colder. The joints and connective tissue are a priority with arthritis in colder weather. Lighter weight with higher volume will be in order. 

Dressing in layers to stay warm and running my gym’s space heater instead of the 5 fans will be an adjustment. 

Hydration has to be monitored more closely in the cold weather as you are less likely to drink as much water as you easily did in the hot weather. 

Arthritis and joint pain will be more of a problem due to the cold weather. Meds will be needed at different times and for pre and post workout. 

Summary:

Stay warm, dress accordingly 

Hydrate 

Longer warmups

Modify workouts as needed 

Address arthritis and joint pain accordingly 

Things to think about as the weather and seasons change into fall and winter.

One of the additional things that I use to reduce pain, and increase stability, strength, and performance is the NAP Heavy Lifting Mouthpiece. 

I’ve used it for over a year now and I love it. I was skeptical for a long time but now I’ve proven its value. I won’t workout without it now. It really helps a lot. 

Use the link below to get your NAP Heavy Lifting Mouthpiece to reduce pain and increase stabilization and strength during your workouts.

NAP Heavy Lifting Mouthpiece

What is Functional Fitness?

Functional fitness training has different meanings and definitions depending on who you ask. 

My definition of functional fitness is when the training has a direct benefit of transfer to a skill or movement that you use in the daily life activities, leisure, sport, or work categories.

In this picture I am carrying in a package of water bottles from my car to the house. This was after carrying in all of my bags of groceries. The exercise equivalent of this activity are all versions of weighted carries. 

Weighted carries are a great exercise that work all major muscle groups, core stabilization, grip / forearm strength and cardio.

The direct transfer benefits are many but most obviously are seen in carrying in your groceries from your car to your house. 

This is just one example. 

Functional fitness is not in my opinion, crazy exercises that have no relevance to real life. 

There is nothing relevant or required of me to spend a lot of time doing inverted or handstand exercises as I never have spent anytime upside down doing anything except maybe briefly while scuba diving. But if you are a gymnast or CrossFit athlete then it becomes relevant. 

Depending on who you are and what you do, will determine what functional fitness is and its relevancy to your training and life. 

Don’t waste your time training on movements that have no relevance to anything in your life, unless you simply enjoy it and want to do it. 

Adapting as We Age in Fitness

I invested in a new set of equipment for the Iron Garage Gym. I got a set of adjustable steel squat heel wedges from the Tib Bar Guy. 

For years I refused to ever let my clients or myself use any type of raised heel wedge for squats. Developing full range of motion and flexibility used to be the deal. 

Now decades later, the old hip and back injuries are limitations that prevent full range of motion and reduce flexibility. So the options are to give up on squats and related exercises or find a way around the limitations. 

So the squat heel wedges allow me to stretch and squat in relative safety with decent range of motion. 

I’m starting out with TRX assisted squats to rebuild the core and leg strength to move on to other squat versions. 

You can find an excuse or find a way. 

I’m trying to find a way. 

Good solid product though, very pleased with my purchase.

Improvise, adapt and overcome.

Go hit the weights!

Kettlebells: A Timeless Strength and Conditioning Tool

I have been using kettlebells for the past 25 years. In 1998, I completed two kettlebell training courses on Fort Benning. 

The first one was hosted by the Ranger Training Brigade and the second one was through Troy University. Kettlebells have been a main component of my training program ever since. 

Last night I verified that kettlebells still kick my ass like they did 25 years ago. I can’t perform some of the dynamic exercises anymore like I could back then. But there are still many basic exercises which still work quite well. 

Training has to adapt to aging and physical limitations. Kettlebells are versatile enough to be used throughout a wide range of exercise progressions and regressions. 

They are a timeless strength and conditioning tool that can be used by all. I recommend kettlebell training for everyone. 

Review of the SMART Acronym for Goal Setting

The SMART Acronym is recommended for goal setting as it provides you with parameters that are more likely to lead you to adherence and success.

The SMART Acronym stands for the following:

S: Specific- your goal must be specific such as “I want to lose 10lbs.

M: Measurable - the goal must be measurable such as weekly weigh in’s and body composition assessments.

A: Attainable - the goal must be attainable. Example-Losing 10lbs is something that can be done. 

R: Realistic- the goal must be realistic. Losing 10lbs is more realistic than saying you want to lose 100lbs. 

T: Timely - the goal must have a time standard such as “ I want to lose 10lbs in the next 6 weeks”.

Check out the video description below.

Learn the proven principles of long term weight loss and healthy eating.

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Should You Use Belts, Gloves, Sleeves etc…

Entering the arena to face the beast on a Monday night. Never Let Monday Win!

Putting on my armor before the great battle of the bench press begins. All of the gurus say you don’t need or shouldn’t train with gloves or gear of any kind. 

Real men or women don’t need such things. Only those who are weak use such things. 

Well, comrades, I’m here to tell ya that is BS. 

Had I been smart and not listened to the macho gurus and used this stuff or something like it 30 years ago, I wouldn’t have half of the problems that I have today. 

The real gurus were using stuff like this 30 years ago.

So I recommend using all of the gear in training to protect your body and enhance your performance. 

And the gear I use now, pictured, is worth its weight in gold to me. 

Train hard and protect yourself. There is nothing wrong with it. 

Even the CrossFit crowd got smart. There is nothing brave or bold about your hands being bloody pulp or your joints being destroyed. It’s just stupid. 

Train hard and smart. That’s how you win in the long game of life.

New Age Performance 6DS Heavy Lifting Mouthpiece 

Active and Dynamic Warmups for Older Adults

Into the arena to face the beast on a Monday night. Never Let Monday Win!

Standing band chest press using a wooden short staff. 

Your active and dynamic warmups should mimic the activity that you are actually going to do in your workout. 

This is different than doing general physical preparedness training which many perform as a warmup. 

As we get older, specific warmups become more important. I use the standing band chest press for the bench press because it warms up the actual muscles and joints used in the bench press.

Increased blood flow and synovial fluid production are important to reduce the risk of injury. The bands also are less painful than the first set on the bench. I also use my first set on the bench and all exercises as an additional warmup set. 

This also allows you to dial in the correct muscles that you will be using during the workout. Muscle activation training is a side bar benefit of specific warmups. 

Warmup and go hit the weights!

How I Create Unplanned Improvised Late Night Workouts

Last night while getting ready to workout, the allergies came out of nowhere. I was about to tap out but I slammed some preworkout and staggered into the gym instead. 

With no plan I decided to show you how I make it happen. Follow me through an unplanned improvised midnight workout. 

The key is to get in the gym and start moving. I usually go right to my sanddune stepper. I warmup with 2 minutes of marching in place. 

I do one minute facing one direction followed by one minute of facing the other direction. This gets the cardio going and lights up the calves, quads, glutes, and hamstrings. 

Then I will pick a core exercise to let the legs recover. In this case I picked modified back extensions. My back and hip are my old injured problem areas so I try to keep them strong. I knocked out 12 reps. 

Next was a lower body / leg exercise that I haven’t done recently. I went for the trapbar deadlift for 6 reps.

From there I hit another core exercise. I chose the flat bench 1/4 crunch for 20 reps. This version of the crunch protects my lower back, minimizes hip flexor involvement, and isolates the rectus abdominus or abs. 

My final exercise was for the upper body and went with 20 reps of elevated bar push ups. This exercise works the chest, triceps and anterior deltoid or front shoulder. 

I tried to keep the rest periods as short as I could and then I did a second round. It was a full body workout that hit all of the major muscle groups. Not bad for having no workout planned. 

And I was seriously contemplating not working out at all. So get in the gym even without a plan and make it happen. I used a simple warmup, core, legs, core, upper body guideline. 

Here is the workout video.

Remember the key is to get in the gym and do something even if you don’t feel like it and have no plan. You’ll be surprised at what you accomplish .

If you want some detailed muscle and strength building info and workout plans to follow, check out my ebook package here: Muscle and Strength Building 

The Gym is more that just a place to workout for many

Catching my breath in between sets, in front of the fan. It was hot and humid. Yet I was able to pull off a decent slingshot bench press workout. It was a 4 sets of 4 reps night. So I managed 135x10, 225x4, 235x4, 245x4, 255x4.

It’s usually nighttime when I workout, when everyone else is asleep. And I’m always alone, except for Jesus, who is my spotter, and Joey, the cat, who is my strength coach. 

The gym is peaceful and calming. Like my survival site, the gym is one of my safe spaces where it doubles as a church, a sanctuary, a place of therapy, and as a place of challenge. 

I’ve always preferred small or private gyms to the big, crowded, noisy franchise gyms. I’ve spent a lifetime in both settings as a trainer and a trainee, depending on the time and place throughout the ages. 

My first gym was a room down in the cellar of my family’s house. My Dad rebuilt it and helped me create a gym / martial arts dojo. Yard sale weight sets and exercise gear with heavy bags, mats and old boxing gear started the journey of a lifetime. 

I started fitness training when I was ten. I started martial arts training when I was 11. I ran my first training class when I was 12, as an apprentice/intern assistant instructor. 

The first training experience came early. 

I started training the tiny dragons and little tigers kids (ages 5-7) class. That would progress over the years until I was running almost all of the classes for youth, teens, and adults. 

At 17, I was selected to become the head instructor of the Kenpo Karate school that I had attended daily from the age of 11. 

Then I joined the Army instead and went in a very different direction. But of course, fitness and martial arts where always with me during that 20 year adventure. 

For the past 15 years, the Iron Garage has been my main gym despite working simultaneously at several other gyms and locations over the years. 

One of the biggest and simplest takeaways that I can give you is this: you must conquer your mind and emotions in order to play the long game in fitness and health. 

Nobody cares so work harder. There is no excuse. You either benefit or suffer from what you choose to do. You reap what you sew. You and only you are responsible for all that you do or fail to do. 

So with that being said let’s go hit the weights!

Biweekly Performance Biorhythm in Fitness

Biweekly performance biorhythm.

It’s a strange thing but it actually happens. 

The Iron Garage has been my science lab for the last 15 years. 

It’s amazing what you can learn when you track data. 

Watch the video below and see if you have ever experienced this.

Why Warmups are even more important as we get older

As we get older our joints and connective tissue become more vulnerable to injury before the muscles do. 

The joints and connective tissue require extra attention in order to facilitate the stress of lifting heavier weights. 

Warming up the joints with a set of light weights and higher repetitions will increase heat, blood flow, and synovial fluid. 

This will aid in preventing injury and facilitate the transition to moving heavier weights during your workout. 

5 Tips to Help You With the Bench Press

Mud stomping a hole in Monday’s attempt to bring me down. 255lbs on the bench is probably light work for you, but it’s heavy for me. 

So getting 5 good controlled reps without ripping or breaking anything in my body is an accomplishment for my dinosaur butt. 

Here are 5 key points I teach / follow on the bench press are:

1. Proper grip, not too wide, not too narrow. Knuckles face the ceiling as you try to crush and pull the bar apart.

2. Body alignment on the bench, eyes under the bar, shoulder blades even on the bench, slight arch in the lower back, butt remains in contact with the bench, legs squeeze into the bench as heels drive into the floor. 

3. Lower the bar at a controlled pace to touch your shirt, never bounce the bar off your chest. Then explode in the push or concentric phase to get the bar up twice as fast as it came down ( in your mind anyway).

4. Inhale on the way down, hold and brace during the transition and then vigorously exhale on the push. Animal screams are authorized and encouraged.

5. Keep your core and legs braced and solid. Don’t let your body move under the weight. Drive the legs into the floor. Keep your butt on the bench. If a foot raises off the floor or your butt raises off the bench even for a second you are a no-go on that rep. 

My bench tutorial goes on but that is what people pay me for. I’ve had dozens of clients raise their one rep max by up to 25lbs just by receiving my class and implementing the instructions. 

Education and experience matter. My two key learning points that I teach are that 1. People think they know and 2. People don’t know what they don’t know. Always be open to learning from someone even if you think you know it all cause 1. You don’t know and 2. You’d be surprised at what you could learn. 

I’ve had the most problems/ resistance to learning over the decades from military clients and former athletes. 2 type A groups who definitely think they know. Then I teach them something they didn’t even know existed (so how could they possibly know that they didn’t know it?) and their minds get blown. 

And yeah I was that guy too until I learned stuff that I didn’t even know existed. Now I learn everyday because I’m acutely aware that I don’t know! Go learn something and hit the weights!

Do you feel some anxiety and fear before the next set of your workout?

When you are in the iron arena facing the beast and your next set is rapidly approaching, it’s normal for there to be a little anxiety, fear, and dread. 

It’s purely a mental battle but you still have to address it and drive on to the next set. A simple technique I use to overcome the mental battle is by using timed rest periods between sets. 

The general rule of thumb is heavy sets require longer rest periods, lighter sets require shorter rest periods. A lot of it has to do with ATP cycle rejuvenation. 

If you don’t experience this mental battle, then you should reevaluate the level of challenge and intensity of your workouts. 

An age old saying is “if you aren’t scared of your next set, then you aren’t working hard enough”. There is a lot of simple truth in that concept. Now on to the next set!

Back Extension Variation Eliminates My Back Pain

I do these back extensions this way to modify it so it doesn’t aggravate my old injuries. 

I still get full range of motion while avoiding dangerous hyperextension. 

And the band adds resistance to add challenge to the movement. 

My back always feels so much better after I do these. When I do the back extensions regularly, lower back pain disappears for me. 

When I slack off and don’t do them, inevitably the lower back pain comes back.  

Keep your core and your lower back strong to minimize pain and injury.

Turning Can’t into Can Do with Heavy Kettlebells

Tonight’s workout was 5x5 kettlebell goblet bench squats. My days of heavy lifting on any type of squats are long over because of my (totally not service related according to the VA) back and hip injuries. 

After the warmup it went from 45, 55, 62, 70, and 79. Then I decided to try the monster, the 106lb kettlebell of doom. I haven’t touched the monster in awhile. Waiting till the end of the workout to pickup the heaviest thing is never a good idea. So I was like, why not? 

I knew it was gonna be a short lived bad idea as soon as I picked it up. It was heavy after too long away from it. I managed to get in 2 reps and I quit while I was ahead. 

But it brought about a positive note. I overcame the mental deterrent that it’s too big and heavy to even try. 

It’s heavy but with a smarter approach, I’ll be able to eventually get 3,4 and 5 reps. It’s not impossible. Your mind will fail you long before your body does most of the time. And if you don’t face your fears, they will always win. 

Entering the arena to face the beast is the mental challenge. If your training doesn’t scare you a little bit, you probably aren’t challenging yourself enough. So in that regard, there was no failure, there was a lesson relearned.

Workout Programming Doesn’t Need to be Complicated

Knock ‘‘em out airborne! 

Sometimes the basics are all you need. 

Simple doesn’t means easy.

Here I did 10x10 on the push-up bars.

10 sets of 10 push-ups with a 2 min rest in between after the 5th set. 

It started off easy but half way through it got tougher with each set. You can adjust the variables to suite your own needs. 

Complicated and super detailed programming is not always required. 

If you are an athlete or training for a specific event, then your programming needs to be more specific and detailed. 

If you are training for general physical preparedness and daily life activities, the programming can be much simpler which doesn’t mean easy or ineffective. 

This push-up workout smoked my pecs (chest), anterior deltoids (front of your shoulders), and my triceps (back of your arms). It also provided some core stabilization training. 

And it was something that I could actually do without causing injury or further injury to the old beat up vet bod. 

The complicated and super detailed “perfect program” rarely lasts more than a few weeks unless you are training for a specific task or event. 

Create a simple plan that you can and will follow. Odds of success are much higher.

Personal Trainer Memorabilia

I found some more memorabilia for the archives. 

The top item is the first patch I had on my hat when I completed the NASM certified personal trainer course and started my fitness business 16 years ago. 

I had somehow lost this patch several years ago. Then recently I found it outside by an old stack of sandbags which I used for my outdoor fitness bootcamp in the yard. 

The second item is the WLS pin that I received after completing the NASM weight loss specialist course 10 years ago. 

And the bottom item is my old name tag that I got in 2007, while working as a personal trainer at Smith Fitness Center on Fort Benning. 

Lots of memories and lessons learned associated with these items.

The Resistance Band Seated Row

Resistance Band Seated Row: another great back exercise with many variations. 

The beauty of using the bands is that you can setup your gym anywhere. 

Here I simply found a sturdy anchor point to attach the band. Then I used my sanddune stepper as a soft, comfortable seat. I braced my feet against heavy kettlebells on the floor.

This, of course, reduces the amount of excuses that you can use to avoid your workout.

Do what you can with what you have!

As with all rows, focus on the elbows pulling down and to the rear instead of your hands pulling straight back working your biceps. 

At the end of each rep, squeeze your lats, rhomboids and lower traps and try not to let the biceps do any of the work.

You can adjust the resistance levels by using different bands and rep ranges. Heavier bands with fewer reps and lighter bands with higher reps, depending on your goal.