My buddy and I used to hunt the area for the best playgrounds. We looked for parallel bars and pull up bars specifically. These were gems. Some schools removed their entire playground if one child fell and got injured. So this was not as easy to find as it sounds. The back of my truck usually had a sandbag, a few Kettlebells and maybe a sled or prowler. Those training sessions were powerful and effective. They were TOUGH. Now, being in my 40s, I find that more calisthenics and … [Read more...]
Is DAILY Bodyweight Training Effective & Safe For Muscle & Strength Gains?
This started all the way back in 1989. Every time I passed a pull up bar or anything I could grab on to over head, I banged out pull ups. This became a daily practice. Same for push ups. Push Ups for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Guess what happened? … [Read more...]
Don’t Get Stuck Being Strong AND Useless
In a recent interview I was listening to between Mike Robertson and NFL Strength Coach Joe "House" Kenn, Joe was asked an interesting question. He was asked what he would like to see more of AND what he wishes he focused on in his younger years. His answer was...... MORE Bodyweight Training, More Playground Workouts and the ability to Move your Own Bodyweight. I've personally deadlifted over 500 lbs, squatted 455 for reps, benched over 300 lbs and at 220 lbs can perform 25 pull ups … [Read more...]
Lessons From Golden Era Bodyweight Bodybuilding Workouts
This post was inspired from my time spent reading the old books of bodybuilding where the greats from the 50s, 60s and 70s spoke often about all the high rep bodyweight training they did. Hundreds of sit ups and crunches. 100 Pull Ups on back day / back workouts. 100 Push Ups for the warm up. These men from back in the day had physiques that were carved from stone. They had what many call today as "functional strength". Many of these men worked manual labor jobs by day so they trained at 5 … [Read more...]