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 :
- Gem From The Vault : A Word of Advice for Training - The Importance of Fundamentals
Justin Andrushko | Follow @JustinAndrushk1
Understanding the basics. - Looking At : Sep 27, 2020
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 : Pillars of Fitness - Types of Fitness Everyone Should Train For (The Bioneer)
Very interesting look at the major areas of fitness - key to a 'well-rounded' approach.
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.
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.
Tip of the Week : The Power of Naming Your Workouts
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.
Here's a simple technique which greatly increases the potential of your workouts. Kira describes the full process in the article Give Your Workout a Name!, but here's a quick story to give you the basic idea :
A few years ago, a couple of young dudes I trained with (Muay Thai), wanted to do some extra conditioning work. I offered to take them on a run up Puke Hill on the weekends.After a few nervous side-glances, both of them asked, "Why is it called Puke Hill?" After striking a suitably melodramatic pose, I just smiled and then walked away.
When they finally got to do the run, I noticed three distinct changes to the way they normally trained:
- Intensity - It was the hardest I'd seen either of them train.
- Team-work - When one of them almost gave up, the other one slowed down and ran beside his friend--helping him to complete the last set of sprints.
- Accomplishment - After the run, neither whined or complained. In fact, despite their exhaustion, both had shit-eating grins plastered across their ugly faces.
Of course Puke Hill is just a hill. Sure it was steep, and using it for interval-sprints was quite challenging, but what hill sprints aren't challenging? So here's the point of my story: I believe that by simply giving the run a name, my two padawans trained harder, worked together better, and gained a greater sense of individual and shared achievement.
Good stuff.
Checking Out : Ghost Pacer (Holographic Training Partner)
Virtual Workout Partners? Yep - for runners, anyway.
Ghost Pacer is a pair of mixed-reality glasses with a definite running focus. They generate a virtual training partner for you, displaying it on the track nearby.
Very interesting idea.
Although I'm keen to test it out myself, I'm also curious to see the second and third generations of a product like this. Something a bit closer to the 'Virtual Training Partners' concept we discussed years ago.
While I'm waiting for mine to arrive, a little video :
The Ghost Pacer.
Quick update on the Hip Thruster we mentioned recently - fantastic thing.
Rather than trying to explain how it works, here it is in action :
Good stuff Bret, looks great.