Posts discussing exercises and activities.
Or, why you should pay attention to what you’re doing.
It’s easy to get caught in a rhythm when you’re doing an exercise. Whether it’s a martial art drill, or a set of squats, as soon as you settle into a pattern your body seems to go off on autopilot, and your mind starts to wander. Ideally, you want to avoid that. Continue reading Mindful exercise
In one of his articles, Mark Rippetoe discusses the difference between exercise and training, and why the two should not be confused. Understanding the distinction is crucial if you want to improve yourself over the long term. Continue reading Exercise, Training, and Play
Before you ask: no, barbells are not strange alien devices which will turn you into The Hulk just by being in the same building. But more on that later.
Weights are a fundamental component of fitness training. Whether you want to get stronger or just shape up, exercising with weights regularly will get you there. While the barbells and dumbbells are relatively recent developments, the idea of getting stronger by lifting heavy stuff has been with us for time immemorial. There are artefacts from ancient Greece describing progressive weight training, and it likely that they weren’t the first people to figure it out. Continue reading Bring on the weights!
Most of us have been felt it sometimes – and if you haven’t, chances are you will at some point. That dull pain that can set in up to a couple of days after a particularly harsh workout, and makes even the smallest movement an absolute torment. While it can happen to everyone, regardless of age and condition, and can be annoying or painful as hell, there’s no need to let the idea put you off your exercise. Here’s why. Continue reading Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)
Body weight exercises, or Calisthenics if you’re feeling fancy, are an essential part of our training toolbox. They are effective, can be scaled easily to your level, and in most cases require no equipment, which is great if you’re just starting out or are travelling. Continue reading Body weight exercises
Towel Day is coming up on Monday 25th, so today we’re going to look at a few ways in which a towel can be employed in your travels towards fitness. Continue reading Towel Power!
Next Monday is Star Wars Day! While we haven’t yet figured out a way to use the force, today we’re going to look at how we can develop a Vader-like grip without having to resort to bionics!
Now, most of us don’t normally need to hang on to the underside of a cloud city with only one hand, but a good grip is useful in daily life. Apart from helping you make a good first impression by giving you a strong, firm handshake, your grip strength is also an important component of your overall fitness. Continue reading Get a grip
Around here, we’re mostly interested in overall fitness and functional strength. By that, we mean that we’re looking to develop the kind of strength useful in everyday life, the kind that helps you move boxes of stuff, lift heavy things, and climb up stuff.
Ok, the last one may not be an every-day thing but it is fun. Continue reading Full body and isolation training
We usually live in environments that have been adapted for us. Environments which are designed to offer us maximum comfort and allow us to go about our daily business as efficiently as possible. These environments make life more pleasant, but they can soften us too much; sometimes it’s worth rediscovering the great outdoors to have a bit of a play in. Continue reading The Great Outdoors
Today we’re going to take a look back at the way some people used to train around a century ago. You may wonder what we have to learn from such a long time ago – surely the science of fitness has advanced leaps and bounds since then, and some of the records of these turn of the century strongmen have been broken over. So why should we look to them for lessons? Continue reading No School like the Old School – Lessons from the Old Time Strongmen
