I’m a huge proponent of using a full-body routine as opposed to a split routine for fat loss, mass gain, and strength. My philosophy is that the body is one unit, and so it should be trained as one unit. The majority of my workouts incorporate only two to three movements and last no more than 20 minutes. For those that follow a typical split routine, I’m going to show you how to steadily transition into using a full-body routine. Read more.
A good workout to me is one that covers all the bases: 1) It’s full body, and 2) It’s intense, and 3) It’s mentally stressful, but satisfying.
Developing a workout is like writing a recipe. You keep tweaking and working at it until what your cooking becomes just right. And despite being such a bad cook, once in a while I’m able to create a workout that so brutal, yet fun, that it gets the job done.
Introducing….the “Punisher” workout
I’ve tried to developed Benchmark workouts in the past, however I feel that a good benchmark workout must stand the test of time. My crew and I have only performed the “Punisher” workout twice, but feel that this workout is the perfect test of both mental and physical toughness.
Here’s how it works:
Round One: 5 Kettlebell Clean and Press each hand 5 Burpeess 10 Resistance Band Punches each hand Sprint
Round Two: 10 Kettlebell Clean and Press each hand 10 Burpees 20 Resistance Band Punches each hand Sprint
Round Three: 20 Kettlebell Clean and Press each hand 20 Burpees 40 Resistance Band Punches each hand Sprint
What makes this particular workout so unique compared to all the intense training that I do is that it is so varied in terms of implements. We’re moving from akettlebell to bodyweight to resistance bands to an all-out sprint. The second thing is this idea of progressive rounds. Each round is twice as hard as the one before it.
But above all, this workout has the most carryover to practical life. For one thing, life is random. The workout may not be completely random, but it does have an element of randomness when you switch over to a completely different exercise and implement, especially after you’ve been so worn-out after the first exercise.
The second reason why this workout has such great carryover to practical life is that you train your body as one unit. Even the simplest action in our life such as getting up and sitting down incorporate more than one muscle group. If in life we don’t isolate a particular muscle group, then why should we be doing so while training?
The last final reason has to do with mental strength. As in life, the workout become progressively and progressively harder. By the third round you’re so tired that you just want to quite. But it’s going to take the mental strength to push you past the physical tiredness and finish the workout. In life, we’ll be faced with challenges that defeat us only if we let them. Push through the pain and you’ll see results.
Speaking of pain. Here’s a video of two of my disciples going through their last rounds with the workout:
Saturday afternoon I was working at my father’s store in the city and a customer held up a five dollar bill. “I found this here. Did someone drop this?”
I said, “Yeah, maybe that old man.” So I grabbed the bill and politely asked the customer to stay there and watch the store for me. I glanced out the door and noticed the man a half block away. So I sprinted with the five dollar bill tightly grasped in my hand. Within a few seconds I hit the breaks and stopped a few inches in front of him. “Sir! You dropped this.”
The man turns around and I hand him the five dollar bill. He looks confused for a moment so I repeat, “You dropped this at my store.”
He says, “Oh thank you.” I nod as he takes out his wallet and puts the bill back in. As I am about to race back to my store, he says thank you again.
I walk back into the store. The customer is still there. I smile and say, “I found him.” Then I take care of the customer, noticing that I am not breathing and heaving like a maniac, as I would have almost 8 months ago.
I’m glad I incorporate sprints into my regular training. Can you imagine if I was a jogger? The old man walked slow, but it would take me a full minute to catch up to him. Anyone who has ever tried to sell a product or worked in a retail outlet knows that you have less than 10 seconds to sell a product to a customer. Sensing my urgency, that nice customer may have left after 30 seconds as opposed to 20 seconds, but the main point is that she would have left. Then I would have a store with no one in it, an open shop for the crack addicts that live a few doors away in government housing.
Then there’s the question of running after the man. For five bucks, hell for even one buck I would have run after the man. That feeling is just too heavy on my conscience. So running after the man to return his money was a necessity, not something I was obliged to do because I wanted to be portrayed as a nice guy. I’m not trying to impress anyone.
I’m just glad I sprint and I hope you sprint too.
Anyways, lets get to my training program.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sunday I met up with Dominic and Deeraj, whom I met on Friday. I shook Deeraj’s hands congratulating him on coming back to his second workout, since so few people do. For Deeraj’s second kettlebell workout, we performed tabata intervals of thrusters. Thrusters are basically a front squat into a push press. The first round was a warm up. The second round we kept track of total reps. I did 60, Dom did 63, and D-raj did 45. Not bad for a beginner. The final round was between me and Dom. Who could perform 50 reps the fastest. The catch was that you were not allowed to drop the kettlebell on the ground. If you did, it was a huge 30 second penalty. I did drop the bell, and so my time was 4:02, and Dom’s was 2:90. Dom says he squats in the gym 3 days a week. I think that’s what helped him out. Time to throw in some overheads and barbell front squats to round out my program.
Diet:
1 – Oatmeal w/ Milk, 1/ cup soybeans 2 – Bean Salad, Handful of Almonds 3 – Indian food, 1/2 cup soybeans 4 – Boca burger w lettuce & ketchup (no buns), 2tbsp peanut butter, handful of almonds
Monday, June 23, 3008
Gathered in the backyard once again, mentally and physically exhausted, Dominic looked at me with weary eyes at 2 in the afternoon. “What are we doing today?”
I smiled and I told him. Here was our workout:
Kettlebell Clean and Press Burpees Resistance band punching Sprint
We all go through phases in our lives that prevent us from training on a consistent basis. However, the main problem is that we sometimes try to make up for the lost time and create some training program that has us do the same or more amount of work from where we left off. Just like everything else in life, you can’t start where you left off. You have to go back and retrain your muscles to slowly get back into the groove of training. Read More.
The resistance band is a great tool for those that may not have as much experience with free weights, are just starting out with their fitness programs, or if you’re stuck in a hotel room or place without free weights. Choosing the right resistance band is almost as crucial as performing the right exercises. And because there is no number on the side that says “15lbs” or “35lbs,” choosing the right band can get a little confusing.
First off, resistance bands are coded by color based on resistance. This color coded scheme is different for each company, so you have to do a little research before going to the store to purchase your own. Many times, unless it’s a specialty health and fitness store, a store will only carry one or two brands, with only one or two colors. These are usually divided into “for men” and “for women.” You’ll usually be able to determine which one is which just by looking at the packaging (if there’s a woman on it, then its most like for women. Vice versa ). This will actually help you with choosing the right resistance, as you now have a starting point. Whats more, since resistance bands are so cheap, even if you get the wrong resistance, it won’t be a huge financial set back (which may not be true for kettlebells).
I chose my resistance band just by walking into a Models and picking out the cheapest one. I chose the one with the guy on the packaging and went home to find out how difficult it really was to train with a resistance band. Unfortunately there is no logo on the band for me to tell you guys what company it is from. However, I can provide you guys with a starting point: For Versa-Tube: Black – Men, Advanced fitness, Yellow – Women, Beginners Green – Beginners, Men and Women Red – Average Fitness, Men and Women Blue – Advanced Fitness, Men and Women
Price Range: $5 – $8 For Lifeline Professional: Level 1 – Teal – 10 lbs of resistance Level 2 – Purple – 20 lbs of resistance Level 3 – Pink – 30 lbs of resistance Level 4 – Magenta – 40lbs of resistance Level 5 – Orange – 50lbs of resistance Level 6 – Red – 60lbs of resistance Level 7 – Yellow – 70lbs of resistance Level 8 – Green – 80lbs of resistance Level 9 – Blue – 90lbs of resistance Level 10 – Black – 100lbs of resistance
Price Range: $11 – $17
Use this as a guide. If you come across any other quality companies, please let me know.
Developing your own resistance band training routine is fairly simple. I normally do not include them in my regular workouts simply because I perform exercises which are ballistic in nature. There is very little momentum use when it comes to resistance band training. This is precisely why resistance bands are often used for speed training.
When training for speed, and athlete strapped to heavy duty resistance bands and told to run or perform some sort of calisthenic exercise. I have used the resistance band as a punching drill by wrapping the band around a free-standing heavy bag behind me, and throwing punches towards a focus mitt which is held by a partner. Try performing 20 reps with each hand with the resistance band, then perform another 20 reps without the resistance band. You will notice a considerable increase of speed in your punches.
I have included a sample resistance routine for you guys to start off with: Monday/Wednesday/Friday
Compound Circuit:
Chest Press 3 x 8
Band Rows 3 x 10
Squats 3 x 15
Rest 5 minutes, then:
Isolation Circuit:
Shoulder Press 2 x 10
Bicep Curl 2 x 8
Upright Rows 2 x 10
Tricep Extension 2 x 8
As stated, perform 3 rounds of the compound circuit, resting 60 seconds between each round, then rest 5 minutes after the last round, and move onto the isolation circuit. This is a great beginner routine and something that you can perform in a hotel room. The workout will not take you long if performed correctly. Feel free to scale the workout based on your fitness level.
A few more pointers regarding resistance bands:
Resistance bands will feel completely different then what you are used to. If you are a kettlebell, free weight, or bodyweight fanatic (such as myself), then you will be pleasantly surprised as to the difficulty and effectiveness of resistance band training.
Resistance bands are the most diverse pieces of equipment, in that you can easily create your own unique exercise based on your needs.
Resistance bands will wear out eventually due to overuse and if they are exposed to heat for a prolonged periods of time. If your resistance band breaks, don’t go complaining to the company. Expect a resistance band to last 6 months if you use them regularly with traditional exercises. They may go earlier if you use them for sports-specific practice.
Do not overstretch a band, and start off slowly into a routine. It is not a piece of equipment that is dangerous. But poor technique and over training is dangerous and will put you at risk for injury.
I hope this post will help you in purchasing and using resistance bands. Any other questions, feel free to post in comments.
Hey guys, this is an opportunity for you guys to tell me what you want to read about. I usually write my posts a few days a head of time and have a few good things planned for the upcoming week. But I want to know what questions lie in your mind. What do you want to know about?
Please post your questions/topics to comments so I can start cracking.
Dominic brought a friend of his to workout with us. Preston looked like what I did about a year ago: overweight, but not obese. The first question I asked him was if he’d ever worked out before. He said he used go to the gym. Right then and there I knew this kid was going to have trouble with the workout. But, to tell you to the truth I was surprised by his determination. Hopefully I’ll see this kid again. Would love to work with him.
Preston was unable to finish the workout. This time is a combined time for al three of us. Basically the order was Me, Dom, and Preston. When the first person finished burpees, the next person started burpees, etc. You’d always have one person resting, although the rest periods weren’t much.
We were able to get a few Pushups out of Preston before he collapsed on to the ground and made a comment about the ground feeling like a bed. Dom’s famous line: “Well don’t go to sleep!”
Because I felt I had a bit left in me, I challenged Dom to the following workout:
3 rounds for time:
10 Burpees
5 Swings
My time: 4:11.83
Doms Time: 7:37.98
One thing I noticed was that Dom was teaching Preston a lot of the movements that I was. He was acting like a coach, and very good one at that. Makes you feel good when your student becomes a teacher.
Diet:
Breakfast: 1 bowl oatmeal
Post Workout: Protien Shake & 2 homemade burritos (Black beans, whole wheat tortilla, lettuce, sauce, olive oil)
Later on: Banana
4:00 PM: 2 slices Sprouted Bread Toasted w/ Peanut Butter
8:00 PM: Tofu thingamagig that my mom made
8:30 PM: Some bean-type food that my mom made, with 3 roti (a type of indian bread)
Have you ever been in a teaching position? Please post your thoughts to comments.
In my opinion, an important meal is one that feeds your immediate need and your long-term need. You only have one immediate need: replenish used nutrients. Read more.
This morning felt more like a Monday. I woke up to a hectic morning which was catapoulted by the fact that my grandparents were leaving for South Carolina and I had to drop them off at the bus station. I wasn’t able to train until 12:30.
Workout:
3 rounds for time:
10 push-ups
10 Push Press
3 sprints back and forth driveway
Time: 7:30.20
Diet:
1:00 PM – Pav Baji (Mixed vegetables with bread), handful of almonds, protien shake w/ milk & flaxseeds
4:00 PM – Palak Paneer (Spinach & cheese) w/ 2 Chopra (whole wheat bread), handful of almonds, 1 cup soybeans
7:30 PM – Gauvar (Type of vegetable don’t know American translation) & Mungbeans w/ 3 Chopra (Whole wheat bread), handful of almonds & milk
I’m a huge proponent of using a full-body routine as opposed to a split routine for fat loss, mass gain, and strength. My philosophy is that the body is one unit, and so it should be trained as one unit. The majority of my workouts incorporate only two to three movements and last no more than 20 minutes. For those that follow a typical split routine, I’m going to show you how to steadily transition into using a full-body routine. Read more.
