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I was having a conversation with one of my clients recently on the topic of holidays. she said something which really made me think a good holiday with good friends is priceless. Granted the destination she chose was a little out of my price range but the the principle was simple. Get away with good friends, relax and laugh. “Laugh until your cheeks hurt!” is what she said. I could not agree more.
We seem to spend our life rushing from one place to the next, caught in a never ending “to do” list of life. Very rarely do we stop and enjoy what comes for free for most of us. And the best thing for you is laughter. Its free, it feels great and it can be an awesome ab workout! What more do you need?
Here are some simple tips to follow for laughter(yes I am giving you tips:
1. Smile
2. If you hear laughter, move toward it. maybe you will see what is funny and it will make you laugh. Maybe not. but what have you got to lose.
3.Hang around funny people. Pretty simple. If you are around miserable and sad people, you will reciprocate.
4.Play with a pet. (I prefer dogs. cats don’t seem like the happy type)
5. Go to a comedy club. Yes there are some really bad acts out there. But remember, these people are trying to make you laugh. Give them the benefit of the doubt.
Hopefully you will try some of these things and it will make your life seem just a little better.
Grab your calculators and your strength results gentlemen, its time to start the work.
For the sake of argument I am going to use increments of 100lbs for all of the tests. It makes it easier to explain and will help you understand what you should be doing.
Deadlift 300lb
Shoulder Press 100lb
Back Squat 200lb
Power Clean 100lb
The key to improving strength and power is to load the muscle to near failure with a heavy weight as often as possible. Now the weight you should be lifting should be heavy for you. not what your buddy can do or what he/she thinks you can do. HONESTY to yourself will help you develop a lot faster than lying to yourself. Its a simple way to look at it but the human body works in simple ways. That being said enough research has been done to allow us to do this in the safest way possible. The Percentages that follow were not invented by me. But by guys in the gym and sports scientists alike. I have taken the best of what I know and given you the cream.
For each of your lifts you are going to work out he following percentages.
50,55,60,65,70,75,80,85,90,95.
example Deadlift
100lb, 110,120, 130,140,150,160,170,180,190
And the same goes for the 3 other exercises.
Once you have worked out these percentages we can get started on week 1-6 of your program. In this program you will have one “core” exercise (1 of the above 4 movements) on each day. During the 6 week program volume will change and the percentages lifted will change. It is important to stick to the program as closely as possible.
Week 1 Day 1
Deadlift (you will take a 3 minute break between each set)
Set 1 60% 5 reps Set 2 65% 5reps Set3 70% Failure
Jump Squats (continual motion) 2 minute break between sets
3 sets of 30 seconds. Leap as high as possible, landing soft and smooth straight into the squat.
Alternating lunges
3 sets 12 reps TOTAL(6 on each side)
Always start light and progressively get heavier. If you get less than a total of 10 reps then you should make the weight lighter.
Day 2
Shoulder Press (3 minutes break between sets)
Set 1 60% 5 reps Set 2 65% 5reps Set3 70% Failure
Pushups(Continual) (2minutes break between each set)
3 sets of 30 seconds as fast as you can maintaining good form
Dips (2 minutes break between each set)
3 sets to failure
Day3
Power Clean (3 minutes between sets)
Set 1 60% 5 reps Set 2 65% 5reps Set3 70% Failure
Wide grip chin ups
3 sets to failure
Bent over row(Palms facing forward)
3 sets 6-10reps Day 4
Situps 3 sets of 1 minute. 1 minute break between sets
Leg Raises 3 sets 12-15 1 minute break between sets
Bicyle Crunches 3 sets of 1 minute 1 breaks
Plank 1 set to failure
20-30 minutes of cardio
Day 5
Sqauts
Set 1 60% 5 reps Set 2 65% 5reps Set3 70% Failure
Juming Lunges
30 seconds jumping high as possible with 2 minute breaks
If you manage to complete 3 sets of 30 sets without stopping add weight by holding dumbbells to your side. Start VERY, VERY light. albs in each hand is sufficient. Once you can manage this, go 2-4lbs heavier.
Sumo Squats
3 sets of 6-8 reps
Use around 25% of your deadlift 1rm when starting until you have correct form.
Although this workout may seem lacking and is very simple its important to remember that the key to these early workouts is to build strength and power in your muscle groups. Numerous exercises will lead to over training and will slow down your progress.
If you wish to add supplemental lifts into this equation feel free. But please try not to add any single joint movements like curls, leg extension or pec fly. NOT YET!!
If this is confusing shoot me a message and I can send you a simple excel program to enter your workout on.. NOT the percentages. Thats your job but the numbers so its easy to log.
You are going to continue this workout for 4 weeks. The only thing that is going to change from week to week is the percentages. Below are the reps and percentages for weeks 2, 3 and 4
Week 2
70, 75, 80 for 3 reps for the first 2 sets and as many as you can n the last
Week 3
80, 85,90 for 1 rep for the first 2 sets and as many as you can for the last
Week 4
3 sets of your 1rm (If you manage more than 1 thats great but you are aiming for arm at 3 attempts)
As mentioned earlier,keep the workout the same but only change the reps and weights for the first exercise on each day apart from core.
In order to reach your full physical potential you need to know what your current potential is. You need to know way you are capable of and what your limitations are. The following test shall set the standard for your future workouts and will also give you the tools you need to become bigger, stronger, faster and leaner. We will be testing a few different things today. Strength, endurance and flexibility. Be sure to mark down all results in your journal and if at all possible put them on your computer somewhere.
In between each test allow 3-5 minutes of recovery.
Always perform tests in the same order.
Do not over inflate your test scores. Keep it real or your results will be fake.
Follow the technical instruction for the tests from the videos below.
Now you have the raw results its time to make use of them.
Come back tomorrow and we will start to piece together your strength and power workouts.
For technique pointers I have attached some great youtube tutorials as it does not make sense for me to re-invent the wheel 🙂
Dealifts
Push press/jerk
Squat
Power Clean
Pushups
Sit ups
Lying on your back fingers on your temples with the feet unanchored, sit up until your elbows pass your knees and then back to the start position with the fingers at the temples.
I have been lucky through the course if my life to have some people point me in the right direction in regards to fashion and how to dress. My mother, always having impecabble taste, a conservative style and always believing you should dress for your body type, gave me the base I needed to be well dressed. Always clean, always pressed. You never know who you may meet. I had also had the good luck of working with fashion designers, interior designers and other creative people. All these people have helped me develop my own personal style while maintaining key basics of good dressing.
Now you may ask what I, a personal trainer and fitness guy, knows about the world of dressing and fashion. “MORE THAN YOU!!!” I answer. Granted my knowledge is primarily limited to men but so it should be.
It has always struck me as odd that the people the best bodies dress the worst. Of course I am generalizing but the fact still remains that apart from Italian soccer players, movie stars (who have stylists) and a handful of NFL players, (married to super models) most guys have no clue how to make themselves look good. Some say they don’t want to. More fool them. Most young men with good physiques believe a tight Affliction T-shirt and a pair of distressed Diesel jeans is dressing well. Not so, unless you are Lenny Kravitz or David Beckham. Over the next few mnths I will give you guys the tools you need to be well dressed. It may take time to change your wardrobe and your mind. But by the time we are done there will not be a thing in your drawers and wardrobe that you will not look good in. Please remember this: If you are in shape or are getting IN shape, STAY THAT WAY! Its your body that makes good clothes look GREAT.
The Basics
1. Never wear anything outlandish. You should be dressed in such a way that people can see that you are well dressed but can’t pinpoint why. Your entire outfit should work as a unit.
2.Cleanliness. This cannot be overstated. Unless you are in the woods, hunting wild boar with a 10 inch hunting knife and crossbow there is no excuse for body odour, long nails and grimy clothes. If you can read this online you have the means to shower, bathe, cut your nails and wash your clothes. If you don’t, you have your priorities all wrong. Remember the better you look after your clothes, the longer they will last and the better they will make you look.
3.Know yourself. Know what type of body type you have and dress accordingly. If you have short legs a long body, keep those low rise baggy FUBU pants in the garbage can. A man who knows his physique is more likely to be recognized as a well dressed individual that does not know.
4. Buy the best you can afford. Don’t confuse expense with quality. But generally, especially with footwear, don’t be afraid to spend more than what you are used to. A good pair of shoes, if well maintained, can last your entire life. Learn how to inspect garments and know what a good stitch is.
5. Coordinate. Although your entire outfit does not have to colour coordinate, each piece should compliment the rest. No one article of clothing should overwhelm the rest.
6. While there are some rules that you should try and follow that does not mean you cannot have personal expression. If that was the case we would all be dressed in monotone clothing. that is not what I am trying to make happen. Have a “style” but “know” how to make it work within the confines of good taste and dressing.
These are some brief outlines on how to dress. Keep your eyes open for my next post: How a man should dress-The Suit
I was driving along listening to talk radio this morning when I heard a commercial that really bothered me. I may be a little off on the script but it went something like this:
Kid 1:I want to be the goalie who lets in the winning goal
Kid 2: I want to be the batter who strikes out with the bases loaded
The commercial ends with some random saying “Its better to have the chance to lose than not to have played at all”. I will get back to this. At the end of last week I was watching the NFL network and saw some clips of Cam Newton, quarterback of the Panthers and there is no doubt in my mind or anyone who has seen him that he HATES losing. These are his words… “I hate losing, I hate losing”. And you believe him.
If you had the chance to read my blog about competition it elaborates on my feelings about this. Truly, sport is about the playing. But the key is to win. Not to lose. If you lose, you are that, a loser! It may strike you as cold and heartless and to be honest I don’t care! To aim for the mediocre, to strive for average is not what created the life we have today. My grandparents and great grandparents help WIN the war. If they were in it for the participation I would not be writing this blog in English. You may argue that we are not talking about war. We are talking about games and sport. What are games and sport if not rehearsal or a miniature version of war, using tactics, trickery and the skill of a few to push the balance in your favour.
I ask if this is a form of discrimination against the talented. We live in a results driven society where speed and getting things done well are paramount and being the best at what you do helps your life to be better. Maybe if we tell everyone its not about the competition but about the sport the good will become average and the average will become umm… more average?
Let us push children and adults alike that it is OK to win. It is ok to be first. I am not saying that being second is a bad thing. It means that you have the chance to win! If you come in last, think about doing something else. I believe we all have talents which will help us win. But as trainers, coaches, teachers and human beings we need to be honest with people. The simple statement of “This is not the sport/subject/job for you” should not be looked upon as a negative. It should be looked upon as a chance to do something that they can truly excel in.
Sean Connery has a funny line in “The Rock”
Losers whine about doing their “best”. Winners go home and f&^% the prom queen”
Over the past decade people have always asked me if I have ever entered a competition for fitness or bodybuilding. have always said “NO!”. I have had a few reasons. Mainly because i like bad foods. I eat well 80% of the time but thats it. the rest is whatever i feel. A few days ago, I came to the decision that its about time to see if i can be as disciplined as those exercise fitness models out there. Maybe, maybe not. We shall see. But one thing is for sure, I WILL be entering a competition and it will be either in the spring or the early summer.
The reason I am sharing this with you is because I will be giving you daily updates on my progress. I will be video blogging my steps. You will ear a lot of boring stuff like the workouts I have done, the sets, reps, weights, food and whole bunch of other things. If you want to know how I feel and the type of things my body is going to go through, stay tuned!
I will keep you apprised of my weight, physique and personal thoughts and feelings.
Stay posted.
Soo… As of today these are my test results
Deadlft 480lbs
Standing push Press 250lbs
Barbell Back Squat 365lbs
Standing power Clean 250lb
1 mile run-I will do that later and let you know my time
Bodyweight Squats-50 in minute
Pushups 50 in a minute
Inverted Pullups Feet on chair -28 reps in one minute
Dips- 28 to failure. not timed
Pull ups on Roman Rings 12 to failure not timed
I currently weigh 230lbs. I am not sure where my weight is going to go to and I am not really to bothered but I, and now you, know where I am starting. Lets see where I end 🙂
So its the new year and you are on a kick to get bigger, leaner stronger than you have ever been before. Heres the meat… Its going to happen. Heres the Veg…Its gonna be hard work.
Over the next few months I will be taking you through a detailed sure fire way to achieve your goals. If you follow my advice, you will be bigger, leaner, stronger and faster by this time next year. As a matter of fact you will be so different you will not recognize yourself!
I am going to explain the basis of what is going to happen and then I will outline what you can expect to be doing over the next 12 months (If you have an issue with committing for 12 months you are never going to achieve the goals you wish).
Periodization.
This a fancy name for scheduling your workout. Knowing when you are going to be lifting heavy and when you are going to be lifting light. Its putting in the most focused effort at each step to achieve your goal. And that goal is BSF (Bigger Stronger Faster). You want to reach a peak by a certain time in the year. We are going to use June 1st as our date. That is around the time we venture to far off hot places, hit up the cottage and pretty much where far less clothes than what we are wearing now. You are going to be performing different cycles during this 5 month/20 wk cycle. The cycles are as follows.
Power and Strength
This portion will ensure you build sufficient strength to lift the loads for the following cycle. It will also improve tendon and ligament strength giving you more stability at joint level when moving onto the next cycle.
Muscle growth/Hypertrophy
This part of your program will be specifically geared towards your muscles growing and developing larger more visible musculature.
Pre competition/Conditioning
Getting lean and showing off your new found muscles is the whole reason a lot of people work out. But they often fail to realize that intensity needs to go up and calories need to be cut. The conditioning workouts will be gruelling but they will pay off in huge amounts when it comes to hitting the beach, lake, patio or anywhere else you happen to be half naked.
Above I have outlined the 3 key parts to the workout cycle. In each (meso)cycle there are smaller cycles called microcycles. As one mesocycle(power) develops it will be moving towards the next mesocycle(hypertrophy) using microcycles to get there. It may sound a little confusing but it will all begin to make sense as the year rolls on.
Enough talking, lets get started. You will need a few things before we begin on this journey. These are a must.
1. Stopwatch. If it has a countdown timer that is even better.
2. Journal. You must know how much you lifted.
3. Focus and dedication. Nuff said.
4. Calculator. Just a simple piece of equipment that can divide and multiply. It is more important than your gym shoes or your affliction/ufc t-shirt.
That is it for toady. Come back tomorrow with your equipment ready for the testing day. thats right, testing day.
For any questions on this article email drew@drewwilliamspt.com
We have been loaded with all these silly pictures and ideas about how to et in shape. We are shown weight training exercises for our legs and gluteus so we may have the “look of a dancer”. We are shown shoulder and chest exercises to give the “look of a gymnast”.
Put simply, its B.S, bollocks, codswallop, crap, rubbish, doo-doo, falsehood, excrament… and so the list goes on.
If you want to “look” like something, do what they do. For example, if you want to look like a couch potato, do what a couch potato does. Watch TV 6 hours a day and drink 2 litres of Diet Coke and consume 1/2 a pizza, 2 bag of chips and 1/2 a tub of ice cream a night. 40+inch waist her I come!! If you want to “look” like a boxer, skip for 20 minutes, shadow box for 15, hit pads or the bag for 15 and then spar for 5 rounds. You’ll be sure to have the lean, toned arms and abs you wished for.
I want you all to know what you want before you embark on or continue on your fitness journey. Don’t waste your time doing things that you believe or think will work, spend the time doing some research and active the body you have always wanted. Maybe you will realize that the goal is a little harder than just going to the gym and doing “plie squats” for legs like a ballet dancer. Realizing that with those squats there are 5 positions and variations on each.
Good luck guys! And remember, if you have any questions, shoot me an email…
Its the new year and we are all “In The Zone”. What zone that may be I don’t know but we are ready to take on the world and make good on our resolutions. We are willing to try anything to get in shape for the coming year. Everything except putting high calorie food in our mouths.
We will try different fads and things that we think will work. And usually people ask me what i think. I think people believes I have the answer to all fitness and workout questions. I have a lot of answers but I do not have them all. Here are some answers to FAQs.
“Drew, what do you think of yoga? Wont it make you long and lean?”
I get this one at least once a week. I think its great for hip mobility and breathing. Thats about it. It is a stretching class that is designed to get easier. Yes there are some challenging poses and it truly does improve mobility of the joints, I believe it is missing fundamental elements to make a great workout. Strength(this is the most important), dynamic co-ordination and functionality. Although flexibility is fantastic for showing friends you can do the splits, it falls short if you don’t have the sufficient strength to maintain joint stability. Also because of the lack of true dynamic movement it falls short in the functional area also. Having a beautiful warrior pose or downward facing dog is not going to stop you from falling over and maintaining balance through a fast lunge.
As for long lean muscles… You got me there. Long I understand. Lean? HOW???? You cant stretch fat out of the body. So no, it will not make you look leaner. If you want to look leaner do a set of squats, pushups, pull ups and sit-ups in the same time it takes to go through a sun salutation. If you get leaner from the stretching I will eat my shoes (They stick of doritos but i will do it).
Yoga is a fantastic and great addition to any exercise program. I tell all of my client and all of my classes to do it. but you must do other things as well.
“Drew, what do you think about Zumba? Its like dancing at a club *insert giggle and smile*)”
Zumba is awesome… If you can dance. Don’t get me wrong, it is a lot of fun and if you have not exercised before it will likely help you lose a some of those unwanted pounds. But like a lot of things, once you master the moves, thats it. No extra loading, nothing more. You would be better off kicking and punching a bag if your goal is a great cardio workout that is not treadmill or elliptical machine. But that being said, as a part of a total workout plan it would be awesome as “part” of the solution. Not THE solution.
“Drew will I get BULKY from training with weights, I don’t want to look like a man*insert concerned face*”
I would like to say this…. If you start to look like you have the muscles of a man I suggest you enter female bodybuilding competitions and win. Having been in the industry my entire professional life I have seen women with great genetics struggle to put on significant amounts of muscle mass. Even with the knowledge of specific training techniques that aim for this, it is still hard, hard, hard work.
So if you truly believe that a few hard total body workouts are gonna turn you into a female Terminator, think again.
“Drew, what supplements should I take?”
Sometimes I have the answers and sometimes i don’t. My suggestion would be to talk to a specialist in the area of nutrition. There are some views of thought that think vitamins and supplementation is just a ploy of the manufacturers to get your coin. There are others who believe that eating foods that are so much lower in neccesary vitamins and minerals as there were 50 years ago we should be consuming these supplements like an extra food source. If you want some really good advice on what you should be consuming contact my friend Kay http://www.zomgwellness.com.
“Hey bro!! What can I do to get Jacked?”
This is pretty simple. Stick to the basic weight training movements and lift. Its going to take time. Probably a lot longer than you want but the work will be worth it. Don’t consider steroids unless you are a complete idiot with no mind. At which point you are a zombie and you shouldn’t be reading my blog. You may ask what “basic weight training movements are” I shall discuss this later on in the week with segments on muscle growth, strength, endurance and power. So keep your eyes open.
Thats about it for now. If you have any other questions pertaining to health and fitness please drop me a line at drew@drewwilliamspt.com
Its been a while since I last posted and my oh my have I been busy!
Its the end of the year and I, like many, are prepping for the New Year. But unlike many I have a slightly different approach. I am not waiting until January to get started, I am getting started 2 weeks ago. Yes i know I messed with passed tense and present tense but you also know my writing skills often have a lot to be desired 🙂
Looking to January as a “new start” has always given us a reason to be lazy and overeat. Thats a cop out. If you think your body should take a month off from doing anything because “you deserve it”, you are wrong. Your body should be even more active now that you have all of this time off. Get out for a cool evening run. Hit the gym up 2 times a day for the next couple of days instead of once over the next 2 weeks. Don’t be a sheep and wander into the gym on Boxing Day because you over ate the night before. Eat and be merry but don’t abuse that fine machine you own. Its called your body and as i have mentioned on previous posts, it needs your help to keep it working well.
I hope this short note will help some of you get out and about today, tomorrow, Christmas Day and Every day until January 1st. If you make the effort today, right now and keep it up over the next 10 days you will not thank me, you will thank yourself.
So Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of my followers and be ready for my first blog go the year on January 3rd.
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drewwilliamspt 