BODYWEIGHT BASICS - Bodyweight Training - Functional Fitness Without Weights

I was doing some driving yesterday and at several points along the Ohio turnpike some great songs came on the radio. I mean, songs that were some of my favorites in years past but, for whatever reason, had slipped my mind. And when they came on -- unexpectedly, I might add -- they were as good as ever. In one sense, great exercises and great songs are just alike. No matter how good they might be, sometimes they just get pushed to the back of your mind and you forget about them - for a little while anyway - but something comes along to jog your memory to remind you just how good they are. And jumping ropes is one of those "classics." It's interesting hearing from a lot of folks who have recently started jumping rope again after not having done so for, in some cases, decades. I know - I was the same way - and Im glad that so many people are "pickin up what I'm putting down" if you know what I mean. Anyhow, heres a few questions that people have sent in regards to jumping rope and rope jump training: ----------------------------------- Hi John, I've been wondering how the weighted rope works on grass. A regular jump rope gets caught up in the grass and screws up the exercise. Does it plow through like a Husker fullback? Aloha from Hawaii, Stephen Stephen -- Mahalo! , my Hawaiian friend. The answer to your question depends on the height of the grass in question. I have had no problem jumping rope in my back yard although if you are doing the exercise in knee-high brush, you may find it somewhat difficult. Of course, you can also jump rope in such a way that the rope doesnt even touch the ground which is an interesting variation that I use from time to time. (and if you let it touch - do a pushup - Yow!) Also, in case anyone is wondering, one of the features of all the Lifeline ropes that we feature is that they are indestructible. Ya cant bust em, and theres no bearings to wear out so basically these ropes will be your ropes for life. ----------------------------------- John, do you recommend any specific workouts when you jump rope? - Pete S. Hi Pete, Ive sent out several different workouts and kinds of workouts in past emails. Check em out in the blog or the articles section. The thing to remember with any cardio work is that it doesnt matter exactly what you do to get your heart rate up, so long as it gets up and all that means is vigorous, physical activity for 15-20 minutes. One of the things about jumping rope is that you can make these little challenge "games" for yourself that make the time go by very quickly. For example, "the no-touch" challenge listed above, or a certain number of jumps in a specific time frame, or even something like the "Essie Logan" workout which is will discuss at a later date. This is also one of the great things about jumping rope - if you want the benefits, theres no complex formula - "just do it." ----------------------------------- John, I was talking to my daughter (now 25) this week. She was here for a visit from the east coast and I told her that I had ordered some jump ropes from you, and would like her to teach me how to jump, as it has been many years since I even held a jump rope. Her comment was "Dad, you know how to jump rope...you taught me when I was 6 years old!" John, it's been too long. Or my memory has faded. In any event, thanks for "re-introducing" me to this great form of conditioning! Doug H. Thats exactly what Im talkin' about Doug - You can diggit. ----------------------------------- It's Tuesday which means later on today youll find me jumping up a storm, either down at the track or in between hill sprints (havent decided which yet) Eithert way, its going to be a great workout, and you can do it too: Lifeline Heavy Jumping Ropes And if you already have taken action and been jumping, good on ya, lets hear from you! (keep it up) Train hard, John Wood P.S. "Within each of us lies the power of our consent to health and sickness, to riches and poverty, to freedom and to slavery. It is we who control these, and not another." - Richard Bach

Jumpin' Rope

Labels: Jump Rope, Jump Rope Fitness, Jump rope Workouts, Jumping Rope, Lifeline Heavy Jump Rope

Bodyweightbasics.com celebrates its one-year birthday today. My, they grow old so quickly dont they? Next thing you know it'll be old enough to drive... In all seriousness, heres a pretty good conditioning workout to use. Youll need a jump rope (heres the one I use: Lifeline Jumprope and a wrist watch with a timer on it, I suggest an Ironman watch by Timex. The workout is simple: 30-seconds "on" with the jump rope, then 1 pushup, then 30 seconds of "rest" -- if you could call it that. Start with 10 total minutes and work up to 20 over time. When you make 20, add another pushup and progress like so. The weathers getting warmer here and I busted this one out last week. I'm a tad rusty on the rope jumping front but it'll come back with time. If you have a heart rate monitor, check your results from this workout – you will be pleasantly surprised. Let me know how it goes. On to the next 365! Train hard, John Wood P.S. Again, if you need a good jump rope, (and who doesn't?) heres the one I recommend: Lifeline USA Power Jumprope

Labels: bodyweight workout, Conditioning Workout, Jumping Rope, Jumprope, Jumprope Workout, Lifeline Jumprope, workout

Reached into the 'ol mailbag this morning and pulled out a great question from our buddy Mike G. Take a look:

Dear John,
I bought Steve Maxwell's Spartan 300 video and it is great. The question I have is how many times a week should it be done?

I love body weight exercises but Ive got a bad back and have been doing swings and snatches. I do two days of swings and one of snatches and have been injury free with no pain.

Can I incorporate these into the workout or do them on opposite days?

Thanks again,
Mike

JW: Mike, a very good question. Above all else, since you are dealing with a bad back, make sure to get checked out with a doc so everything is on the level. It sounds like you have a schedule that is working but I certainly would not want to tell you to do anything that you shouldnt be as I am no doctor and can give no
medical advice.

Now, assuming all systems are go, its going to depend on your Goals - and yes, there are many different ways to approach this question.

If your goal is simply to stay active, it doesnt matter what you do, just do something every day.

In my opinion, this can certainly a good thing, but if I used only
those kinds of training, I personally would do it like this:

Kettlebell work and Maxwell's Bodyweight workout on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Then Running/Conditioning Work on Tuesday and Thursday.

Yes, theres no question there is a conditioning aspect to the kettlebell and bodyweight suff on MWF, but my feeling is – and the reason I know this is through experience – is that specific conditioning workouts – walking, jogging, running, swimming, jumping rope, road work, etc are necessary and should be a part
of every program.

A schedule like this will help enhance recovery as well as build mental toughness, in my opinion.

Keep us posted on how it goes.

Train hard,
John Wood

Labels: 300 Bodyweight Training, Bodyweight Training, Jumping Rope, Kettlebell Training, Kettlebells, Steve Maxwell

I looked through the ol mail bag this morning and picked out a good one: Our friend Hal B. writes: Hi John, Many of the old body weight programs like Atlas, Mike Marvel, etc. said to train very day. Does the principle of taking a day or two off to promote muscle growth not apply to body weight training as it does to weight lifting? - Hal

Hi Hal, that’s a great question, one that gets asked very frequently when it comes to bodyweight training. As usual my take on things is a little different than you might see elsewhere:

Yes, you can absolutely train with bodyweight exercises every day -- and many people do. They have their daily routine; they do their thing, and then move on to the next.

Tis certainly one way to do it and many people have had a lot of success with daily training. And while we are at it, let’s look a couple different ways to "slice" a daily training routine.

1. You could do a set number of repetitions without fail; say 50 pushups, 50 sit-ups, 50 squats or something along those lines.

2. You could have a "free for all" workout where there is no structure and the only goal is to keep moving (and keep the heart rate up) for an extended period of time.

3. You could have a very-rigid, very-regimented program devoted to specific exercise goals, like progressively increasing your pull-ups or high-rep squats, hand balancing etc

4. You could perform a "hard training" day followed by an easier training day which isn’t quite as challenging. The goal of the hard day is to improve while goal of the easier workout is to work out soreness, increase blood flow etc,

5. You could combine some of these – say "rigid structure" on Monday/Wednesday/Friday with a "free for all" on Tuesday and Thursday.

Of all of these I tend to favor #5 since it involves a greater variety. And don't forget, bodyweight training involves much more than calisthenics. It could be rope jumping, rope climbing, hill sprints, breathing exercises, muscle control etc.

It should be well understood that one of your greatest enemies in physical training is boredom. If you find yourself dreading your workout it is going go become harder and harder to stay motivated to do it. Involving a bit of "chaos" or unpredictability is good for your training because it keeps you on your toes.

It should also be understood that if your goal is gain muscle mass, like a bodybuilder, there are going to be some choices that make more sense outside of the boundaries of what bodyweight training can offer. You’ll have to supplement your program with other exercises.

I personally feel that the most productive programs must incorporate several different ways of training for the most well-rounded approach but, as you can see, bodyweight training offers a lot of possibilities.

Train hard,
John Wood

Labels: Bodyweight Squats, Bodyweight Training, Daily Bodyweight Training, Handbalancing, Jumping Rope, Rope Climbing

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

Labels: Cardio, Jumping Rope, Training Ideas

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

Labels: Cardio, Jumping Rope, Training Ideas