Sledgehammers: Extreme Exercise # 1
We're going to be kicking off a series of articles here on the Extreme Fitness Results Blog examining the world of extreme exercises. While many people throw themselves into P90X or the Insanity Workout, there's a whole slew of others who like to get Rocky Balboa on their workouts and try a variety of intense exercises. Over the next few weeks we're going to examine a number of these off-the-beaten track workouts, and evaluate whether they're worth considering. Today we're going to kick off by looking at a very cool exercise: the sledgehammer Tabata. It's cool because you get to swing a sledgehammer around, and if you're a boy, that's like returning to be a nine year old. If you're a girl? I don't know. Do girls like swinging sledgehammers around? Probably! That's just how awesome sledgehammers are.
We're kicking off a new feature here at the Extreme Fitness Results Blog, where we'll link you guys to the best out there on the web. Now, there are hundreds upon thousands of amazing articles, ideas, suggestions and comments being made every day, so this is of course just a dip in the bucket, but for my money, each of these links is worth clicking on ;)
The message is always the same: Never Give In, Never Surrender. Work through the pain, tough it out, walk it off. Dig deeper, bring it, be all that you can be. But sometimes life intervenes, sometimes events go awry, and you just have to stop. An injury, a new job routine that hogs all your time, a complete implosion of your willpower, a failure to get the results you needed to stay motivated, something comes along and you find yourself unable to get out of bed and do your workout. What do you do then?
A lot of people ask me about the timing of their recovery drink or protein shake. Some people have an almost religious belief that you need to drink it immediately after your workout, and take it into the gym with them, chugging it all down just as soon as they drop the barbell. Others believe you should have it in your system before you even workout, while others say that as long as you have it within forty minutes of your exercise, you're fine. Which is right? The discussion on nutrient timing has become intense of late, with some people going as far as to say that it doesn't actually matter what you eat, as long as you eat it at the right time (which is nonsense). So what's the real deal? When should you drink your recovery formula?
One of the questions we get the most from people trying our extreme workouts like P90X or Insanity is why they haven't dropped as much weight as they had hoped. Three, four weeks into the workout program, and they're standing on the scale, looking down at the numbers with a mixture of resignation and defeat as they see that they haven't changed as much as they had hoped. Despite the work, the sweat, the effort and careful eating, the pounds haven't fallen off like water. Are they doing something wrong? In fact, they are. They're focusing on the wrong thing.
If you want to look at the greatest warriors ever portrayed on film, the most heroic fighters with blade and shield, the ultimate paragons of fitness, strength, agility, tenacity and the almost inhuman ability to keep going when all others have dropped, you need look no further than Conan the Barbarian or King Leonidas. Both men have become iconic, paragons of male power and brutality, washed in blood and standing defiant atop mountains of bodies. But which was the fittest? Which man would trump the other? In today's blog post we examine their strengths and weaknesses, and reach what can only be a controversial verdict.
Today we sit down with Fernanda Bressan, an Independent Beachbody Coach and part of the Extreme Fitness Results team that recently went out to Hawaii as part of the Beachbody Top Coach Annual Trip. We asked her about the experience, the people she met, and what it was like to take a class live from Tony Horton, and here's what she had to say:
Everybody is always saying you should work out. Get in shape. Run around in circles, or in the same place, lift heavy pieces of metal, sweat sweat sweat. Swim laps in the pool, or throw balls through hoops, or do some more running, or lift some more heavy pieces of metal. But why? People, let's be honest. All that exercise is hard. It takes work. And then you have to shower afterward. Is it really worth the bother? I'm not convinced--so here are the top 6 reasons to be lazy, as seen by me, on this Friday, when I am feeling a little loopy. Here we go!
St. Patty's Day is upon us, and you all know what that means: debauchery, good cheer, celebrating with friends, drinks, partying in Irish Bars, green beer, more partying, seeing more good friends, and then a terrible hangover on Thursday. Ah, perfect, I can you hear you exclaim with eminent satisfaction. But is it?!? Is that the best one can hope for today, or is there more, could we collectively reach out for a better, more nutritious goal? Nutrition, I hear you mutter? Who said anything about nutrition? Well, your doctor, for one, and your mother, and your personal trainer too. They're all very concerned, you know, and asked that I write this post. So, think of this as a missive from the ones who love you best. So set aside that green beer for a moment (it's only 10.30am, you shouldn't even be drinking that yet!) and listen up.
When it comes to post-exercise habits, sports nutrition is concerned with various things: glycogen replenishment, enhancing your body's recovery and adaption to your training, and re-hydration. If you take a look at any supermarket shelf, you'll see scores of energy drinks, recovery drinks, and sports drinks, each more fantastically colored then the next, and all of them promising to turn you into the next athletic superstar if you just drink them. Which is best? Is classic water better, or milk, or do Powerade and Gatorade really hold the secret to optimal re-hydration?