$$$ conditioning idea: booty gauntlet

What you need

1-3 kettlebells of different weights

The skinny

EMOM different variations of pushups. No set rep ranges.

Hit kettlebell movements in the EMOM rest period post pushups.

The fine print on kettlebells

In order, hit sets of the following. Once you fail to hit a complete set, drop down to the next difficulty tier. Once you hit swings, do 1 all out set per weight per round.

Note that you don't rest unless you have to. The snatchesx5 tier means you do that pet arm until it's time for more pushups or you run out of gas.

Example of difficulty tiers (reps per arm)

20kg snatchesx5 

20kg snatchesx3 

20kg cleansx5

20kg cleansx3

16kg snatchesx5

...

16kg cleansx3

20kg two handed swings 1xamap

16kg two handed swings 1xamap

more conditioning ideas

This entire endurance thing is new for me. Each implement tends to have its own benefit and place in my life. 

Kettlebells so far have been a fun comprimise between strength, hypertrophy, and cardio. Noticable changes to my back and shoulders started cropping up after a few weeks of continued use. 

Dragging sleds don't feel like they have a huge cardio impact, but literally every old injury feels better once I'm done. There's a side benefit of making my butt gigantic.

Kegs are fantastic but a little goes a long way. I've enjoyed both longer timed carries (20min) and shorter carries (5min) post workout, but the fact for me remains that 1x weekly is plenty.

Chaotic ideas that have worked for me

1. (Kb) Xmin non-stop

So many opportunities here. 

Single moves (half snatch, clean and press) work great for the sake of being able to 'rest' in the rack or extended position - switching arms when needed. 

Monster sets work even better from a cardio perspective. It's as simple as adding in reverse lunges or squats between switching hands.

Carries before switching hands is easier on cardio, but great for back health. My obliques have thickened up to meet the demands of this route.

2. (Kb) descending rep ladders

Same dealeo as #1 in terms of how many movements you want to employ. The major difference is work is split into individual sets complete with resting after a ladder is completed.

Increase the top rung number of reps to ramp up the difficulty without increasing weight.

Example single movement

Left hand half snatch 5 reps

Right hand half snatch 5 reps

Left hand half snatch 4 reps

...

Right hand half snatch 1 rep

Rest. Repeat 1-3x

Example monster sets

Left hand clean and press 5 reps

Left rack squat 5 reps

Right hand clean and press 5 reps

Etc

3. (Kb) escalating density 

Similar to #1. You set a clock for 15 to 20min. The difference is each set is not 'as many as possible.' 

Each set is 5 reps per arm. Do as many sets as possible in the time block. Rest as needed. Let reps drop as needed.

4. (Sled) EMOM

EMOM = every minute on the minute

Pick a predetermined path and drag the sled one way at the top of every minute. Try to time the distance and load so your rest works out to 20-30 seconds.

5. (Sled) Xmin until death

This is reserved either for: everything hurts or I have no motivation. Keep the load light, set a clock, and drag until you can't. The speed should be slightly slower than walking, and the pump in your legs will be unreal. 

all things hamstrings

Hamstrings are my favorite muscle to train. A good portion of this is I feel my age when Im not giving them the love they deserve. That being said there is no magic bullet for hamstring training that gives me everything I'm looking for. Different moves for different reasons. I'll incorporate everything on this list in any given week.

Best for hypertrophy

Nordic hamstring curls

My wife has made repeated comments at the size of my legs and ass at a time when I hadn't been squatting in over 3 years. I credit nordics for the lions share of that booty.

Best for bulletproofing

Monkey feet leg curls

Fit any leg curl in here. At a time when my back was completely fucked, the method I used to ease some of the pain was daily band leg curls. 

Best for feeling athletic

Power cleans, single leg supported rdl

Power cleans are my classic favorite. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention them, but they aren't something that are in my rotation (replaced with kettlebell cleans which are not remotely the same). Single leg rdls tap into a deep stretch for very little cost up front. Supporting yourself with one hand (power rack, pole, whatever) allows you to lean into the stretch without balance being the limiting factor. This can be easily loaded by holding a dumbbell in your free hand.

Bonus: bodyweight leg curls

An old Ben Bruno move. This is a great alternative to nordics, and can be loaded much quicker. Extra bonus is they are incredibly safe to perform, and single leg eccentric work can be emphasized almost immediately.

get fucked : kettlebell (snatch, press, clean) + carry

I'm sitting in the airport wondering why my lats are telling me to get fucked. Oh. Oh ya. That thing I did that I loved that kept my back under constant tension for 15min.

General template

One arm movement 1-10 reps

One arm suitcase carry

Switch arms

Repeat until time runs out (10-20min)

For me this looked like

5 reps snatch left arm

Walk my lawn suitcase carry

Switch arms

5 reps snatch right arm

Walk my lawn suitcase carry

Switch arms

Repeat for 15min

If it's too easy, add reps, distance, time, or weight. This satisfies exactly what I want out of kettlebell training. My back feels amazing (as it usually does after any sort of abdominal challenge), my cardio was challenged, and I feel like I can still do it again in a day despite my lats anger.

instant recovery : suitcase carry after pressing

Post dips, pressing, whatever, I want to make sure my shoulders are taken care of. Static stretching definitely helps, but I've found suitcase carries to be a more useful option.

I discovered this on accident a few years ago when my left shoulder was giving me issues. All of the tightness I felt immediately dropped away after a light set of cleans. Because I'm a dumbass, I didn't give this two thoughts other than thanking the gods for my sudden great fortune. Suitcase carries are an easier touch method of getting to the same result.as a bonus, they add some basic GPP and promote back health (via building up obliques). 

5-10min post workout is plenty. Walk preset distances and switch hands, or just switch hands when your grip tires out. Weight doesn't matter as much as you would think, but 35+ pounds is a good minimum to start with. If harder conditioning/strength/hypertrophy is the goal instead of recovery, feel free to jack up the weight.

advantages and disadvantages to high frequency

Reflections from the last few months. I've taken exactly 0 rest days for physical activity.

Advantages

- anything 'counts.' physical activity doesn't always mean resistance training.

- hard training can happen less often. The systematic stress is pretty heavy, and It's rare I'm not sore. You can hit muscles with difficult training 2-3x a week and know you're still more than covered.

- smaller warning signs can be heeded immediately. If you need to cut a training session short, who gives a shit. You'll be back at it tomorrow. Nothing is lost.

Disadvantages

- as previously mentioned, constant soreness is a given. Get used to it.

- a high emphasis needs to be placed on recovery. This isn't a bad thing (you should pay attents regardless of whether you're lifting daily), but not having your sleep and diet dialed in will be brutal.

Example schedule: this shifts as needed

Monday: AM full body, heavy. PM Neck

Tuesday: AM sled drags. PM leaded carries

Wednesday: AM kettlebell swings and cleans

Thursday: repeat Monday

Friday: repeat Tuesday

Saturday: heavy conditioning. Sandbag clean and presses, kegs, kettlebells, whatever.

Sunday: walk, sled, whatever.

Within all of these days, I try to get a few fast paced walks during the day or in the evening with my wife. The most obvious change I've noticed is my sleep and axiety has been superb. 

working from home | no excuses to succeed

The fun and not as fun reality of working from home is there is literally no way to hide from the fact that the variables overlording your physical and mental health are mostly under your control. That's a lot to take in. When I couldn't get in shape in the past, I could convince myself it was because I couldn't stop to eat, sleep, or train as often as I wanted. There was always something that filled the gap of 'well if only X I'd be a monster.' Granted these statements were bullshit before I worked from home, let's take a peek at some common variables.

Sleep: I've got no time to sleep!

False. You have no commute. This means you can sleep more at the beginning and end of your day. The wildcard for mid day naps also exists. Who is gonna stop you?

Cardio: I've got no time for cardio!

Falssssse. Multiple short walks a day or hard cardio via conditioning can and should be sprinkled throughout the day. Need to find time? How many times do you dick around on your phone or streaming services? There's time.

Diet; it's too hard to plan meals!

This is stupid false. We live in the future, and the future has Instacart and slow cookers. You literally can have people shop and machines cook for little to no time investment. You have complete control over everything that enters your house and your mouth.

Training: I don't have time to train!

False. Do I even need to do this? I've trained every day for the past few months. Multiple times a day when I have the energy 

The fact is, if you work from home, you are the closest thing to being able to live the life of an elite athelete without being an elite athelete. Add on a few cheap home gym items (pull-up bar, rings, single kettlebell) and you're set for life. 

The cold truth of working from home is this: if you can't get lean and jacked with every advantage in front of you, it was never going to happen. And that's a hard pill to swallow 

conditioning | grit

Over hulaween, I asked my buddy what his secret talent was. Grit. He said,.without hesitation.

I fucking love that. So much so, that I've stopped calling conditioning conditioning or hard cardio. I'm training grit. Resilience. The ability to push through a shitty situation when I want to stop. I've been in a daily training habit for 2 months now (love it), and the majority of my training surrounds grit workouts. 

Why?

- they're good for your heart.

- there is no guess work. I allow chaos to dictate implements, sets, reps, whatever. The only variable I pay attention to and set ahead is time.

- it's an amazing way to start a day or even break up a day.

- they make the workouts that drive strength and hypertrophy easier and possible (see: via rehab and injury prevention).

If we are being honest, I'm fanboying because I've ignored grit my entire training life. All of the programs that said do your conditioning? Ya I didn't. And I regret it a ton.

Today's grit

16min EMOM 

- odd minute 25 kb swings

- even minute 5 kb cleans

8.5min suitcase carry for distance (also kb)

Red Deck - Lifting for Destruction

Rehashing an old favorite from earlier this year. 

WEEK 1-3

1. Dips and rows

AM - Strength

• R Dip 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)
• R row 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)

 PM - Hypertrophy

• BW Dip, BW Row (ladders or downs)
• Tri ext, curls, delts

2. Condition 

3. OFF

4. Pushups and pullups 

AM - Strength

• R pushup 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)
• R chinup 6x3, rest pause last set (ex: 5,3,2)

 PM - Hypertrophy

• BW pushup, BW chinup (ladders or downs)
• Tri ext, curls, delts

5. Condition

6. OFF

WEEK 4 - Deload

Straight sets 6x3 50% week 3 weight

DAILY

BSS - add 1-5 reps/leg per day

Ab wheel, as needed

Injury, Attitude, and Repeating Mistakes

I want to reflect for a bit. I had an article queued up about differences in training between my 20s and my 30s, but then I got hurt. I got hurt doing something I would have specifically called out as fucking stupid in the article I didn't finish writing. I'm really trying to figure out what I'm frustrated about with this entire debacle, because getting hurt is unfortunately part of the game. It doesn't matter if you exert yourself physically or otherwise. Injury can find you.

For a quick preamble before the bulleted list, I fucked up my neck and my right knee. My left arm has been completely numb for days (although that is almost completely turned around) and I feel a sharp pull in my right knee when it bends under weight. 

My thoughts from this last shitty week:

• My immediate thought was I'm fucked and it's not going to get better. This is a loser mentality. A 'war story bro' mentality. So what if my most of my body is out of commission, my left leg is fine. What's to stop me from racking up obscene amounts of volume with my left leg while the rest of me heals? Absolutely nothing. I'm not an invalid. I'm just acting like one.
• I've been seeing a neck injury coming for weeks. Instead of, I don't know, actively working on making it stronger for once, I kept hammering in on compound moves that I know are tough on my neck and traps.
• Once the initial neck injury happened, I doubled down and did farmers walks to stretch out the area. This no doubt both made the initial problem worse as well as incited the knee fun I'm experiencing.
• For the longest time, I have no programming. I'm lost at sea.

So where do we go from here? I'm in a weird spot where it's not a great age to take large risks or to ignore nagging pains. I had the right idea with one of my workout ideas (which I promptly abandoned after a week) where I could alternate heavy and light blocks of movements. 

Light (4 week blocks)

• Calisthenics.
• High volume.
• High frequency (2x / day). 

Heavy (4 week blocks)

• Weighted calisthenics, barbell squats, and barbell deads.
• Medium volume.
• Medium frequency.

The keys I'm missing are consistency and training for longevity. If I want a chance in hell in being in good shape when I'm a father, I need to abandon my chaotic approach to programming. There's a time and a place for chaos, and that's for conditioning. I can engage with the plan above and not exclude sandbags, farmers, kegs, whatever. I just need to be smarter with them. When I'm introducing chaos to my routine every week, I'm not correspondingly listening to what my body is saying. And bubbee, it was screaming before I got hurt. 

bodyweight leg curl (rings): underratted assistance movement

Digging up a gem from Ben Bruno to splurge a little bit. Back when i was on a steady diet of calisthenics + carries something weird happened. My legs and rear got bigger. Way bigger. All the while without me putting on fat.

The problem with having a routine with a ton of variety is you have no idea what was poison versus what worked. I didnt use weights. So what the fuck was it? Was it bulgarian split squat jumps? Was it farmers walks? Was it nordic hamstring curls?

Ive had a few months to try these things out in isolation. The verdict is bss jumps dont make my legs bigger, farmers walks are good for everything but tend to be a multipler stimulus for other movements (i.e. an rpg support class), and nordics dont do shit.

The other party member i had was an old friend - bodyweight leg curls suspended from rings (holding rings with my hands). They are supremely underrated and here is why:

- lower back friendly. Unlike RDL's (great movement, but erectors tend to be the weak link) your hamstrings and ass are the limiting factors.

- loadable: add a weighted vest. use one leg. Elevate your legs higher. Hold the top contraction longer.

- great 'feeler' movement. I get immediate feedback that this is making my backside bigger and stronger.

- mother fuckin hyyyypertrophy. There were many variables tied to my size increases, but they were most pronounced with high volume leg curls.

work capacity maximum

Edit: The day after

Everything is sore. I'm full on tired. I did not eat enough to support this level of volume.

I still love this concept.

Edit: a week after. Everything is stronger because of this session. I think the right way to play this is to come back to bw only 10 to 20yrs down the line if my joints require the break. 

This idea: I guess i want my heart to explode. Seriously, my blood is pumping and i didnt even do the entire thing in a single bound.

The course correct back to pure calisthenics for upper body is:

- it's enjoyable af. 

- it's easy on the joints.

- everything else is not agreeing with my body right now no matter how light. For real, a 35lb dumbbell press damn near injured my neck.

- this fits in nice and easy with a fasting schedule.

Lower body? You keep doin what you were doing baby. With the exception of nordic curls, all of the bodyweight leg stuff was doing fuckall for me except making my hips angry.

Tu/Th/Sat

(Opt) Breathing squat 1x20

Circuit 3-8x

Lower - kb swing or nordic 

Upper - switch push and pull in a giant mechanical dropset

Mon/wed/fri: fast, sled work

Example circuit:

Nordic x amap or kb swing x10

Ring dips, rest 20s

Ring pullups, rest 20s

Ring pike pu, rest 20s

Ring pullups band assist, rest 20s

Ring pu, rest 20s

Close ring pullups band assist, rest 20s

Bar dips, rest 20s

Bar parallel pullups, rest 20s

Close bar dips, rest 20s

Bar parallel pullups band assist, rest 20s

Pushups, rest 20s

Ring rows, rest 20s

Tri ext, rest 20s

Bicep focus partial pullups

Rest 3-4min

So ya, lots of work and long fucking sets. I didn't plan this out, and no two circuits were exactly alike. In general, i moved from harder moves to easier moves. That's it.

kratos dominoose: high frequency, alpha destiny inspired

Schedule

Sunday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Heavy

Wednesday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Light

Saturday: Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

Heavy/Light Days

- 3 movements, 15min block per exercise

- Movement 1 is dynamic: power clean, snatch HP, DB snatch, push press, BTNPP

- Movement 2 is a squat: BSS jump, FS, ZS

- Movement 3 is a pull: RDL, seated row

- Heavy days: Sets of 1-3

- Light days: Sets of 6-12

Calisthenics, conditioning, quick and the dead

- If doing quick and the dead swings, do them first for power.

- Calisthenics can be ladders or countdowns. Get in a fuckton of volume on basic movements. 

- Randomize calisthenics movements and conditioning. Figuring it out on the actual lift day is great.

Example calisthenics

Ladder ring pullups 1,2,...,10 super set bar dips 2,4,...,20. Try to eliminate all rest.

Countdown bar dips 20,19,...,1. 60s rest between sets.

Example conditioning

Sled drag, run back to start, keg carry. Rest 30-60 seconds.

Sandbag highpull x4, sandbag zercher carry. Rest 30-60 seconds.

Any of Chandler Marchman's kettlebell conditioning. Post with growing list.

olad: linear progression (all muscle groups)

Writing this shit down as it comes. Too often I find myself grasping for a concept i fleshed out and poo poo'd. Ive been grateful for the few times ive actually catalogued my training because it's been great to look back on and analyze.

AM: Conditioning

- not optional.

- Chandler Marchmans kettlebell routines work great here, but anything made up on the spot works period. The more alien the better.

- do not repeat workouts close to each other.

- avoid excessive lower back strain (heavy farmers carries are a no go).

PM: OLAD

- optional. Skip days when absolutely wrecked or feeling low/depressed from overreaching.

- stop sets before you hit grinders.

- (until top set = 5 reps) top setxamap,  volume sets, 1xpump set.

- (when top set <= 5 reps) 10x3 or 12x2 straight weight.

- (when 10x3 or 12x2 fails) switch movements

Example week

Mon: ring chinup

Tues: rdl

Wed: ring dip

Thurs: jump squat

Fri: rope climb

Sat: db clean and press 

Note: weekend dates are great for farmers because of added recovery. Likewise, hybrid explosive speed strength moves (snatches, clean and presses, high pulls) go well here.

kettlebell conditioning : chandler marchman collection

Creating a data dump for all kettlebell conditioning ideas I've liked and used from Chandler Marchmans YouTube channel. These fit in great as post workout finishers, or a post power workout finisher.

Unless otherwise stated, every exercise is completed in a series with 5 reps. Each series is completed 2-5 times with 2-3 min rest.

Shoulders builder, 6/18/21

Link

Offset z press, each arm

Clean and press, each arm

Lateral pushups

Pushups on kettlebell

Goblet walk (50ft)

Two handed swing

Deadlift

Legs 11/20/20

Pause goblet squat ss reverse lunge x10

Two handed swing x10

Dead x10

Link

Note: do not underestimate this one. A 45lb kettlebell whipped my ass. I took at least one break per set. The last set felt like a max effort every rep. This works great right now in lieu of a quad focused day 

Legs 7/4/21

Goblet squat, deadlift
3x5 goblet
3x5 dead
3x3 goblet
3x3 dead
3x1 goblet
3x1 dead
Rest and repeat 2 more times
Each intra set uses a different weight
Ex: 3x5 goblet means
1x5 weight 1, 1x5 weight 2, 1x5 weight 3

Link

morning conditioning 6/28/21

10min

3 box jumps

10 step ups (per side)

10 pushups

This was great. Woke me up without grinding me down into paste.

olad : pulls and squats only

I've never liked pressing. For me, it's the last kid picked for a frisbee game. Fuck, ive got to place Carl on a team. He's gonna slow down whatever team he's on but i cant just leave him on the sidelines playing Pokemon. 

It's not even the movements that irk me necessarily. Explosive presses in particular are fun af and i see a direct transfer to my shoulders when i put in the effort. The nagging feeling is i feel like they are taking away from the things i really want to do. If i could run cleans and snatches until the end of time i totally would (disclaimer: and still have nasty shoulders and triceps). 

Here's the test. Im not saying Carl can't play, but he's not exactly on the team. Ive toyed around with one lift a day (olad) in the past and absolutely adored it. The limiting factor always becomes my ability to recover. A lot of this stems from heavy pressing and utilizing rest pause a little too much to drive volume.

New test: 

- olad with upper body pulls and squats 

- alternate lower upper

- avoid failure most of the time

- swap movements when one stalls

Carl still gets hit daily after olad: 

- different press variation and ab wheel.

- Grease the groove method in play. Stop well before failure every set.

Sample week

Mon: 

- glute ham raises

- hspu

Tues:

- ring chinups

- pushups

Wed: 

- bss (left leg)

- rear delt raise (left)

Thurs:

- ring rows

- db press (left)

Fri:

- bss (right leg)

- rear delt raise (right)

Sat:

- rope climbs

- db press (right)

Sun: rest

Sets and rep schems will not be found here. Generally, start with a higher weight set, get in some medium weight volume, and end with lower weight higher volume. If you want to add 1 set of extremely light minor accessory (see: curls) this wont break the bank.

10min conditioning can and should be added daily where possible.

In terms of progression, it doesn't matter too much. Add weight every few weeks or strive for more reps. Swap a move when it gets boring or stuck. Ez.

pezutti wisconsin

Lean into it

Morning

Ring dip 100x1, 55x2x2

Kb swing 3 rounds 40s on / 20s off, 20kg

Afternoon

Upper body pull medley

condition | sandbag hp and bw squat | very minute on the minute

I greatly regret basing my reps off of the first set. 

1st set

3 sandbag high pulls

6 bw squats

Internal monologue: well i barely felt that. Am i coddling myself? Has the bitch not left mah soul? 

Sstan: double it

Internal monologue: yeshhhhh mah mashterrrr

Min 1 - 10

5 sandbag high pulls 

10 bw squats

By minute 5 i yearned for death. This was a great end to an upper body workout. Doing high pulls with the sandbag is money because there doesnt have to be a concentric. I just drop the fucker on my feet.

How to:

Every minute on the minute do

5 sandbag high pulls

10 bodyweight squats

The faster you finish your sets, the more rest you have before the next set. This was surprisingly brutal.

calisthenics: push legs pull legs (repeat)

It's not like it sounds. 

I want to work out every day. If im going balls to the walls with the same muscle groups daily, that can't happen. If i do ring work too often, my hands get ripped up. Theres got to be a medium.

Enter the bro split version of calisthenics. Typically PPL (push pull legs), I'm interspacing legs in the mix much more often to give my hands a break. 

Break each phase into 2 month long cycles: hypertrophy and strength

Hypertrophy phase: bw only on push and pull 

Pull 

Legs

Push

Legs

Repeat

Push and pull hypertrophy 

4-5 movements, 5x10 per movement, avoid failure

Start with difficult movements, move towards easier

10s-60s rest between sets

2min rest between exercises

End with isolation (shoulders, bi or tri)

Legs hypertrophy 

1-2x lift per day

Quick and the dead (kb swings and pushups)

Conditioning 

Strength phase: weighted calisthenics 

Stick with ring dips and ring chinups

1st Push/pull

Legs

Off

2nd push/pull

Legs

Off

Repeat

Push and pull strength 

1st push/pull 1x3, 3x8 (autoregulate weight)

2nd push/pull 5x5

Legs strength

Same as hypertrophy 

Add in glute ham raises and trap high pulls