11.30.2007
New from Steve Maxwell: The 300 Spartan Challenge
 The 300 Spartan Workout | With the popularity of his first DVD, The Ultimate Upper-Body Pull-Up Workout, we just had to release the next video in Steve's line of great bodyweight training DVDs: The 300 Spartan Bodyweight Challenge Maxwell takes simple bodyweight exercises and augments them into very intense and effective routines that you can do at your home or gym with little or no equipment. These drills will improve your strength, endurance, athleticism and promote fat loss and cardiovascular strength as well. Train like a Spartan warrior and take on the ultimate bodyweight training routine: The 300 Spartan Workout. |
Labels: Bodyweight Training, bodyweight workout, Cardio, Endurance, Flexibility, Gymnastics Rings, Progression, Pullups, Spartans, Steve Maxwell, Upperbody Workout, warrior training
6.21.2007
Killer Abs and How to Run for Fun
| If you've been reading my emails for a while, you have been reading about my recent adventures with running. Back when I was still playing football, I always thought of cardio work as a necessary evil. It had to be done but I sure didnt enjoy it. And then football ended, and I never had to run another step ever again -- and for a few years I didnt. But for some reason I got the itch to get back in shape and so I began. At first it was damn tough, but my desire to get back into shape was much greater than my desire to do otherwise so I stuck with it and today, I actually enjoy it (something I never thought I would be saying) |  |
The most recent issue has a feature on a woman named Ceci St. Geme, who, in past days had been a highschool cross country champ, and later a 3000 meter champ at Stanford.
These days, after coming out of "retirement" the forth time, she is a 44 year old mother of six and still kicking major tail while running sub-17 minute 5Ks.
Its quite an inspiring story, one that is well-worth checking out.
One thing you cant help but notice throughout the article is the fact that this gal has abs like a a Greek goddess. -- I'm talking unbelievable.
Here's what she mentioned in her interview was her daily "core strength" routine which is as follows:
100 sit-ups
100 pushups
3 minute of the plank pose
2 minutes of V-sits
Thats a very nice routine, simple, to-the-point and challenging enough for just about anyone.
Train hard,
John Wood
P.S. These exercises and many more like them are shown in detail in Eddie Barans Bodysculpting Bodyweight Exercises for Women Training book. Dont let the title fool you though, these workouts are tough (or as tough as you need them to be. Check out more info right here:
Eddie Baran's Bodysculpting Bodyweight Exercises for Women
Labels: Ab Training, Bodysculpting for Women, Cardio, Training Ideas
4.21.2007
Yesterday's Workout
As I have mentioned previously, I have really been having some great results with adding rope jumping into my workouts. Here's a look at what I did for yesterdays workout:
I like to train over by the basketball arena here in town. You can see for a couple miles in each direction - makes you feel like King of The World.
So anyhow, yesterday I strapped on a heart rate monitor, grabbed my Jump rope, and headed on over.
As a side note, I recommend having a good heart rate monitor, it's nice to know how hard you are actually working. You can get a pretty basic model relatively inexpensively.
I also recommend having a digital watch with a timer function.
The order of the day was pretty simple:
In the workout I mentioning a few days ago I suggested rope jumping sprints - 30 seconds on/30 seconds off for 10 minutes as a good one to try.
I figured that might be fine for normal people but I like to push the limit so I went for that schedule for 20 minutes straight.
I averaged somewhere between 108 and 87 jumps per 30 second 'round.'
Let me tell you, this really gets the blood pumping. I also like the fact that the wrist rotation helps increase recovery and cut down on forearm soreness from tough grip workouts.
When the 20 minutes were up, I did four additional rounds - two rounds of vacuums and two rounds of the Farmer Burns Stomach flattener.
The interesting thing is that my heart rate kept the same pattern for the breathing exercise stuff and didn't drop until I was all through. Seems like the motor was still running, even when it was still in park, so to speak.
It was a great workout, a relatively simple one, but also as challenging
as you want to make it.
Give it a shot sometime and let us know how it goes.
Train hard,
John Wood
I like to train over by the basketball arena here in town. You can see for a couple miles in each direction - makes you feel like King of The World.
So anyhow, yesterday I strapped on a heart rate monitor, grabbed my Jump rope, and headed on over.
As a side note, I recommend having a good heart rate monitor, it's nice to know how hard you are actually working. You can get a pretty basic model relatively inexpensively.
I also recommend having a digital watch with a timer function.
The order of the day was pretty simple:
In the workout I mentioning a few days ago I suggested rope jumping sprints - 30 seconds on/30 seconds off for 10 minutes as a good one to try.
I figured that might be fine for normal people but I like to push the limit so I went for that schedule for 20 minutes straight.
I averaged somewhere between 108 and 87 jumps per 30 second 'round.'
Let me tell you, this really gets the blood pumping. I also like the fact that the wrist rotation helps increase recovery and cut down on forearm soreness from tough grip workouts.
When the 20 minutes were up, I did four additional rounds - two rounds of vacuums and two rounds of the Farmer Burns Stomach flattener.
The interesting thing is that my heart rate kept the same pattern for the breathing exercise stuff and didn't drop until I was all through. Seems like the motor was still running, even when it was still in park, so to speak.
It was a great workout, a relatively simple one, but also as challenging
as you want to make it.
Give it a shot sometime and let us know how it goes.
Train hard,
John Wood
Labels: Cardio, Jumping Rope, Training Ideas
4.18.2007
Try This Old Favorite
About three months ago I happened to catch a few minutes of one of those old boxing shows on cable. Something they showed was a few minutes of one of the all time greats - Sugar Ray Robinson - jumping rope.
The man looked like a machine -- it was an amazing sight.
This triggered something from way back and I thought it might be a nifty idea to add jump roping to my training. I made a mental note to get one but it got I filed back in my mind somewhere and I forgot about it shortly thereafter.
It so happens that less than a week later, a friend gave me a brand new jump rope, the very same kind that I planned to get.
Hows that for some crazy, mystical, cosmic thing?
And so, on my conditioning days, I added rope jumping to the mix.
The first time out let me tell you, 120 seconds doesn't sound like a long time but trying to keep jumping all out for that long seemed like an eternity,especially since I hadn't jumped rope since grade school.
But, like most things, the more I did it, the better I got.
The thing about jumping rope is that you know when you slow down, -- you can feel it, and you also know you can go just a little bit faster than you are at any given time.
Most times I will combine rope jumping with other kinds of conditioning work. Something I had a lot of success with was sprinting a 400 followed by a minute of rope jumping. I did this six times and it's a killer.
I have also used jump roping as its own workout. 30 seconds on/30 seconds
off' for 10 minutes will let you know if you are in shape or not.
Those are just a few ideas.
The truth is, I have enjoyed this kind of training (about as much as I could, given the circumstances.) and thats why I keep doing it.
Something to think about if you are lacking in the cardio department.
Train hard,
John Wood
P.S. Want to get started today? - Heres the jump rope I use:
Lifeline Power Jumprope
The man looked like a machine -- it was an amazing sight.
This triggered something from way back and I thought it might be a nifty idea to add jump roping to my training. I made a mental note to get one but it got I filed back in my mind somewhere and I forgot about it shortly thereafter.
It so happens that less than a week later, a friend gave me a brand new jump rope, the very same kind that I planned to get.
Hows that for some crazy, mystical, cosmic thing?
And so, on my conditioning days, I added rope jumping to the mix.
The first time out let me tell you, 120 seconds doesn't sound like a long time but trying to keep jumping all out for that long seemed like an eternity,especially since I hadn't jumped rope since grade school.
But, like most things, the more I did it, the better I got.
The thing about jumping rope is that you know when you slow down, -- you can feel it, and you also know you can go just a little bit faster than you are at any given time.
Most times I will combine rope jumping with other kinds of conditioning work. Something I had a lot of success with was sprinting a 400 followed by a minute of rope jumping. I did this six times and it's a killer.
I have also used jump roping as its own workout. 30 seconds on/30 seconds
off' for 10 minutes will let you know if you are in shape or not.
Those are just a few ideas.
The truth is, I have enjoyed this kind of training (about as much as I could, given the circumstances.) and thats why I keep doing it.
Something to think about if you are lacking in the cardio department.
Train hard,
John Wood
P.S. Want to get started today? - Heres the jump rope I use:
Lifeline Power Jumprope
Labels: Cardio, Jumping Rope, Training Ideas
