Gymless Training Blog

The Kaizen Principle & Bodyweight Training

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:40:00 GMT

In Japanese the word Kaizen means constant and never ending improvement via small, incremental steps. Traditionally this has been applied to the business environment however I also read about the Kaizen Principle being applied to fitness training in one of Charles Poliquin’s excellent books The Poliquin Principles. It really struck a chord with me and I have been using the principle ever since in my own fitness programs and those of my training clients. Applied to fitness training the Kaizen principle implies that you must seek a small improvement each and every time you perform a workout. Over the long haul these small improvements add up to some really impressive gains.

Merging bodyweight exercise and the Kaizen Principle is a little trickier than traditional weight lifting as the monitoring of performance improvements is not quite as simple. When performing compound barbell movements like the squat, deadlift and bench press you can keep all your training parameters the same and simply look to add additional resistance to the bar each time your perform a movement (commonly known as linear progression). However, when using bodyweight exercises it is not quite this easy. You can of course use an adjustable weighted vest, ankle weights or bands to add resistance to certain exercises however this is not always optimal and/or possible. Instead you have to look to other performance markers such as:

1. Successfully completing a harder exercise progression

2. Improved movement quality (quite a subjective measure)

3. Increase in repetitions (or duration for isometrics)

4. Reduced rest intervals between sets

5. Increased workout density (good for fat loss)

The first two markers in this list are more closely related to strength and skill development, the middle marker is a good indicator of both strength and work capacity improvement (depending on the number of reps in question) and the latter two markers are good measures of work capacity improvements.

Arguably increasing the total amount of work performed in a workout (volume) could be gauged as a performance improvement too however I normally prefer to focus on quality over quantity as adding more and more volume to a workout will begin to seriously eat into your powers of recovery and exponentially increase the chances of injuries and niggles rearing their ugly head.

As I discuss in my Gymless Training System eBooks the Kaizen mindset can also help determine how often you should train. As a general rule I like the following mantra:

“If you feel fresh enough and strong enough to improve on your previous workout then go for it. If you still feel tired and sore and doubt you will achieve any performance improvements then rest for a further day or two”

Remember, there is no one size fits all training formula which we should all use for optimal gains in strength and performance. Our age, training experience, biomechanics, injury history, recovery rates, day jobs, family commitments, sleep cycles all vary to such an extent that it is impossible to prescribe a one size fits all solution. Instead I recommend using the Kaizen Principle mindset to determine your workout frequency. If you feel like you are fresh enough and strong enough to beat your previous workout totals then go for it. If not, then back off for a further day or two and focus instead on some low intensity restorative exercise techniques.

Using previous workout scores, optimal workout frequency and the Kaizen concept I regularly see people push much harder than they otherwise would in a workout in order to top their scores and continue moving forward. Obviously you cannot improve forever in a particular workout (or else we would all be able to jump over buildings and run through walls) so once you feel progress stalling (or even before you start stalling) ensure you switch things around with new exercises and/or a new training focus. Typically beginners will be able to make progress for longer before hitting a plateau whilst more advanced trainees will likely have to swap things around more regularly to make progress.

Remember… small gains in the short term, big gains in the long term!

PS - The one time I would ignore the Kaizen Principle is during your recharge/recovery weeks. Here the focus should be on effective recovery and not performance improvements!

Ninja Warrior Bedroom

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:35:00 GMT

This is great, I want one.....

Born To Run Video

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 12:58:00 GMT

A nice follow up video to the post I wrote last week about the book, Born To Run. Particularly like the end of the video where they examine the ground impact forces of barefoot running vs traditional running shoes!

People Are Awesome

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 18:04:00 GMT

Fun video to finish the weekend....hard to pick a favorite but I am quite enjoying the backflip/basketball combination at 3.52...can't decide whether it is legit?!

Too Much Of A Good Thing

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:15:00 GMT

Modern life is full of stressors, some of them positive, some of them negative!

Eustress - A beneficial stress which produces growth, performance and repair (Hans Selye)

Distress - A detrimental stress which can cause decay or damage (Hans Selye)

Exercise can fall into either category depending on how you juggle the intensity, volume and frequency of your workouts. Like so many things in life, you can get too much of a good thing! If you consistently destroy yourself with frequent high volume workouts, exercise will quickly move into the destructive realm. It will steal your energy, ramp up your cortisol levels and leave you feeling beat up and drained. Granted there are certain times when using this kind of approach within a carefully structured training cycle can set the stage for some good adaptations. However you cannot simply train your body into oblivion day after day, week after week without accepting some negative consequences.

For those who simply want to get better body composition, improve their strength and fitness and feel good on a daily basis then opting for exercise quality over exercise quantity is more often than not the way to go. Certainly you should train hard, but make sure you are not exceeding your powers of recovery with the volume and/or frequency of your hard training sessions and thus turning a good thing into a bad thing.

Of course at the other end of the spectrum you have plenty of folks who don’t exercise or move their body at all, but that is a story for another day....

Born To Run

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 08:57:00 GMT

After a long time sitting in no-mans-land on my to-read-list, I was recently given a copy of Born To Run written by Christopher McDougall and immediately set about it. I have to say, given my dislike of endurance running I was surprisingly gripped by this book which takes you on a journey into the world of ultra marathoners and a long-lost tribe located in Mexico’s copper canyons, The Tarahumara, who excel at covering unfathomable distances at great speed.

One chapter I particularly enjoyed was when the author took a look at the potential benefits to be derived from running barefoot or as phrased in the book....

“Lost in all the fireworks between Ted and Caballo was an important point: running shoes may be the most destructive force to ever hit the human foot”

I for one am certainly a big advocate of getting your feet out of their cotton wool packaging and allowing them to work as evolution intended. Much to the despair of my girlfriend I am a proud owner of some Vibram 5 Finger shoes and since making the switch to these admittedly ridiculous looking trainers for my sprint workouts and long hikes I have noticed nothing but good things happening to my often troublesome right knee. I can only put this down to stronger feet, enhanced alignment and better biomechanics brought about by going barefoot. If you have any interest in the topic of barefoot running then this chapter is for you. The author gets up and close to some leading running coaches and physiotherapists sold on the benefits of barefoot running and examines the big players involved in a multi-billion dollar trainer industry which may ultimately be built on nothing but empty promises!

“The de-conditioned musculature of the feet is the greatest issue leading to injury, and we’ve allowed our feet to become badly de-conditioned over the past twenty five years” Gerard Hartmann

So has the book ignited my desire to compete in some ultra endurance events? Erm, in a word, no. Whilst I can certainly see the attraction in completing these immense challenges (and tip of the hat to those that do), an optimal prescription for health and fitness it is not. Give me some strength training, sprints and mobility work any day of the week. That said, Born To Run is an extremely well written and totally absorbing read and one that is most definitely worth adding to your collection!

The Truth About Exercise

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 09:21:00 GMT

A few nights ago the BBC aired a Horizon documentary, The Truth About Exercise, which I thought was a definite step in the right direction of mainstream reporting in the area of health and fitness. For those that did not watch the program you can still catch it on iPlayer or read the accompanying article on the BBC website. Here are my fifty cents on some of the points raised during the program...

Chasing calories is a futile task

This segment of the show correctly demonstrated how unfair the ‘burning calories’ versus ‘consuming calories’ fight is. In a few mouthfuls the show presenter was able to undo the calories burnt in 55 minutes of moderate exercise. It pains me to see how deep-rooted this notion of using exercise purely as a mechanism for increasing calorie expenditure has become. Why can’t people look beyond calories burnt and instead focus on all the other tremendous benefits of exercise including:

Improved strength and function
Improved movement and flexibility
Improved cardiovascular power
Improved energy system efficiency
Improved insulin sensitivity
Improved bone density
Improved organ reserve and longevity
And I could go on.....

No wonder people struggle for motivation when the only thing driving them on is a digital number creeping slowly upwards as the workout duration drags on! Here is an analogy I like to use with people still sold on calorie chasing....

"Rather than focus on burning fuel, focus on building a better engine"

I promise it is a more satisfying and ultimately more effective way to approach your workouts!

High Intensity Interval Training Improves Insulin Sensitivity

By measuring insulin levels in the presenter’s blood for an extended period of time after consuming a high sugar drink the researchers were able to graphically display his insulin sensitivity. Then after a month long intervention of high intensity interval training they repeated the experiment and were able to show a 24% improvement in insulin sensitivity....very encouraging!

So the underlying message is work harder, not longer! Hardly groundbreaking news, but I was pleased to see this concept being presented to a larger audience....hopefully it will gain some traction. I am not 100% convinced by the programs recommendation of 3 minutes max effort work per week but hey, it is a good starting point I guess!

What about the foods you eat?

I thought the program would have really benefitted from taking a closer look at the pivotal role food plays in the whole health and fitness equation but alas it was not to be. Needless to say, doing 3 minutes of high intensity cycling per week coupled with a diet full of donuts, muffins and soft drinks is still going to leave you in a pretty sorry state of fitness both inside and out but perhaps this is a program for another day?!

Overall, definitely worth a watch!

Simple Fitness Is Best

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:58:00 GMT

One of my training philosophies is that you should strive to keep things simple. As with most things in life, over-complicating fitness training tends to negatively impact performance. With this in mind I have outlined below a series of common fitness goals with a list of bullet points summarising the bare essentials you should focus on when pursuing that particular goal. I am well aware it is possible to dive much deeper into each goal but for many this is unnecessary (at least in the short term!) Choose a goal and then pursue it. Ignore all the distractions and minor details which simply stall your progress!

Goal 1 – Strength

Work with exercises or loads which you can perform for 5 reps or under (10 reps or under for novices)
Balance volume and frequency so you complete as many good reps as possible per training week
Periodise your training to avoid injury and allow strength adaptations to occur in the muscles & connective tissues
Seek progress on a cyclical basis (heavier resistances)

Goal 2 – Muscle Gain

Lift a moderately heavy load lots of times (sets & reps)
Base your training around multi-joint compound exercises
Keep rest periods between sets short (60-120 seconds)
Increase training density on a regular basis (Work = Force x Time)
Eat a high volume of nutrient dense calories
Allow time for muscles to recover and grow

Goal 3 – Strength & Muscle Gain

Use the above two methods in a conjugate or block combination
Conjugate - Separate training methods within the same week
Block - Separate training methods into training blocks (1-6 weeks)

Goal 4 – Run Faster

Increase maximal strength (particularly in your lower body)
Increase rate of force production (power)
Improve sprinting technique (stability, mobility, relaxation, biomechanics)

Goal 5 – Fat Loss

Focus on the quality and volume of your food intake
Get healthy (more sleep, stress management, less booze, toxins etc)
Move regularly (strength training and sprinting works best)

Goal 6 – General health and fitness

Focus on the quality of your food intake
Get healthy (more sleep, stress management, less booze, toxins etc)
Move regularly (strength training and sprinting works best)
Don’t exhaust yourself with too much training

Simple is often better and in my view that is certainly the case with fitness training! Don't concern yourself to much with the small details (at least while you are getting going). You can always fine tune your training program further down the line once performance improvements are that little bit harder to come by.

Minding Your Mitochondria by Dr. Terry Wahls

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:28:00 GMT

Check out this excellent TED presentation given by Dr. Terry Wahls on how she used her diet to cure MS and get out of her wheelchair. A great reminder to us all of the importance of eating high quality food from good sources!

Enjoyment - Consistency - Progression

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:38:00 GMT

Three habits that breed long term fitness success....

Habit 1 - Enjoyment

In my eyes this is where any successful training program begins although I doubt everyone will agree with me.....

I hated every minute of training. But I said to myself, suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion! Muhammed Ali

Like the great Muhammed Ali you could just suck it up, put in the time and effort and make progress whilst hating every minute of it. However, is this really likely to be the most successful formula for the rest of us? I doubt it, the more likely outcome is you will slave away for a few weeks or maybe even a few months before throwing in the towel at which point the use it or lose it principle will kick in and your strength and stamina will erode away.

This is why (in my opinion) finding a training program you enjoy doing is so important. Enjoyment breeds consistency which in turn breeds progression! Enjoyment could stem from the performing the individual workouts, it could stem from overcoming a particular challenge or fitness goal, it could stem from the people you exercise with. It doesn’t matter, as long as you enjoy the process you will set yourself up for habit 2.

Habit 2 - Consistency

Next on the list is consistency. This needs little explanation, performing one workout every couple of weeks is not going to get you anywhere fast. On the flip side, if you make working out a staple habit (which is much easier if you enjoy your training) you will pave the way for the all important final habit to take form....

Habit 3 -Progression

Last but not least is the key habit of progression. Habit 1 and habit 2 are really just precursors that allow habit 3 to happen. The human body has an amazing biological mechanism for adapting to the demands placed upon it. Applying habit one and habit two (with some smart programming) will allow you to take advantage of this evolutionary advantage and progress from average joe to serious competitor in almost any exercise discipline. Patience is the key to making this habit effective. Progress will happen via a long series of small incremental improvements, not in one giant cascade! Push forwards then back off, push forwards further then back off... you get the idea! Try not to concern yourself with how others are progressing around you, they are playing the game with a different set of genetics and will progress differently from you..... focus on your own journey and enjoy the ride! Don’t be the guy who does the same old thing at the same old intensity week after week, year after year... unless of course you are happy with mediocrity?!

Food Inc Trailer

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 12:26:00 GMT

Definitely worth a watch.....

5 Paths To Harder Push Ups

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 13:46:00 GMT

Used in the physical development of every culture around the world from ancient times to today the push up is a timeless exercise which can be used to build strength and endurance across your chest, anterior shoulder, triceps and trunk stabilisers! Most people are familiar with the classic version of this exercise (demonstrated below) and with a bit of practice are soon capable of performing multiple full-depth repetitions.

Ok, so where can you go next?

Once the classic push up is mastered most people attempt to progress by simply shooting for more and more reps. Of course, there is nothing wrong with this, being able to perform 50+ push ups is an impressive feat of strength endurance but it is not the only way to progress your push up training and beyond a point it will not help you get any stronger! The aim of this article is to demonstrate 5 simple modifications you can use to instantly increase the difficulty of this great exercise without making wholesale changes to technique (such as in the hindu push up series or one arm push up series).

Variation 1 - Slow Eccentric Tempo

One of the simplest adjustments you can make is to slow down the eccentric portion of the movement (lowering). This forces your muscles to work harder, for longer, in weaker biomechanical positions. The net result, you develop greater levels of strength throughout the entire range of motion. Anywhere from three to thirty seconds can pose a decent new challenge!

Variation 2 – Pause/Explode

Once you are comfortable performing numerous slow eccentric push ups you can increase the difficulty further with some more manipulation of training tempo. In the pause/explode method, you stop at the bottom position of the movement and hold for a pre-set period of time (4+ seconds works well) before exploding upwards with enough force to get yourself airborne. This combination helps you to:

Build strength in the weaker portion of the movement
Dissipate stored elastic energy in the connective tissues
Generate maximal concentric force in minimum time to get airborne

When performing this variation you must ensure you land smoothly and absorb the impact forces correctly across your wrist, elbow and shoulder joints to avoid jarring these areas. Keep exercise volume low to start as you condition your muscles and connective tissues to this movement!

Variation 3 – Decline Push Up

Manipulating tempo is one way to increase the difficulty of a push-up. Another is to adjust the leverage of the movement through different hand, grip and body positions. A very simple way to accomplish this is to elevate your feet off the ground. This shifts more of your bodyweight onto your chest and shoulders causing a corresponding increase in the difficulty of the movement. You can of course play around with slow eccentric and pause/explode training tempos when using the decline push up.

Variation 4 - Narrow Knuckle Grip

In this example I am using a narrow hand position with a knuckle grip (fists closed) to increase the strength demands on my tricep muscles. Once more, you can play around with tempo variations using this setup.

Variation 5 – Pseudo-Planche Push Up

Another way to alter the leverage of the movement is to shift your bodyweight forwards so that your hand position shifts down towards your lower chest (instead of directly underneath your shoulders). This is the first stage in the journey to a full planche, an incredibly impressive feat of strength. Again, you can play around with slow eccentric tempos using this technique but I would not recommend going airborne with explosive concentric contractions….you will more than likely hurt yourself!

N.B. This position can be quite demanding on the shoulder and wrist so ease into it and keep the reps low to begin with. Using a knuckle grip (closed fist) helps alleviate some of the strain on the wrists.

Conclusions

Beyond a certain point adding additional reps to an exercise you can already perform competently is not going to help you get much stronger. I prefer and recommend you begin to implement harder and harder variations into your training (on its own or in conjunction with some higher rep work). When using weights this is an easy task, simply add more weight to the bar, however with bodyweight exercise you have to be a bit more thoughtful in your approach. By manipulating variables such as training tempo and body position as outlined in this article you can continue to develop your strength and performance above and beyond what can be obtained using the classic push-up variation. The same principle holds true for most other bodyweight exercises which I will demonstrate in future blog posts and newsletters.

Talking Pull Ups With Rob Hayward

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 22:27:00 GMT

In last months issue of the Gymless.com Newsletter I tracked down one of London’s top strength coaches and grilled him on one of the most effective bodyweight exercises around… the pull up. For years, Rob has been getting busy city workers leaner and stronger using a combination of olympic lifting, weight training, kettlebells and gymnastics. In this interview he kindly offered to share some of his wisdom….

Afternoon Rob, thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer some questions for us. I want to talk to you about pull ups, one of the key bodyweight exercises. Let’s start things off by getting your views on why people should train this movement?

Where to begin... They should be a staple of everyone's workouts. It's just a basic ability to be able to lifts ones own bodyweight up. Pull ups are arguably the most effective arm and back exercise and have endless regressions and progressions to ensure they are challenging and suitable for everyone from a training newbie to the most advanced athlete. And most importantly, if you find yourself in a cliffhanger style life or death scenario you will survive to train another day.

Agreed, everyone should be able to perform at least a couple of pull ups. What methods would you use to help a client achieve their first pull up?

If someone cannot do a single repetition at bodyweight then I use the following basic three pronged attack:

1). High rep conditioning with resistance bands to assist the lifts. 5 sets of 6 reps (that's high rep in my book). All repetitions should be done with a full range of motion (chest to bar at top, full dead hang at bottom). Two second hold at the top of each rep and smooth lifting action throughout. To get stronger the body must be challenged, that means that if you are physically capable to doing more than 5-6 reps in any of the sets then the resistance was too easy for you and you must decrease your assistance. Failure is a good thing here and you should aim to fail your final rep of each set despite your best efforts.

Above all, progress, progress, progress! You should aim to very slightly decrease the assistance every session whilst still being (only just) able to perform the desired rep range. After a few weeks you should see that those small decreases in assistance have added up to a large decrease and that you are now stronger and close to your full body weight pull up. It is amazing how many people train at the same intensity week after week and wonder why they don’t get any stronger.

2). Maximal eccentric work. Often when an individual is too weak to lift themselves upwards they can at least lower themselves slowly. Use the following protocol:

a) Climb up and start at the top of the pull up range. Lower yourself as slowly as you can. Once you have built up to a 30 second smooth lower you should have the strength to perform 1 full pull up.

b) Now you can do 1 full pull up, start the set in a dead hang, lift yourself up to the top of the range and start building towards another 30 second lower.

c) Once you have this 30 second lower you should be able to do a second full rep.

d) Using this process it should be realistic to add 1 rep/week for 10 weeks, if you are disciplined and practice 2-3x / wk.

3). If you need to... lose weight. Pull ups are a classic strength to body weight ratio exercise and although there is a huge strength factor there is also an obvious body weight factor. If you know you are carrying a few extra pounds then the pull up quest will be an uphill struggle. Cut out all refined sugar and processed carbs for a start.. But that's another subject.

I assume your female clients follow these same protocols?

Yes.

Any common mistake you see when people perform their pull ups?

The number one mistake that I see on pull ups which will stop people getting stronger is partial range lifts. Time and again I see people claim they can do 10 reps and then they get on the bar and bob their head up and down 10 times. This will neither enhance strength or function. Every rep must be from full hang (elbows completely straight) to full lift (sternum as close as possible to the bar).

The second big mistake we always see is using a kip (or hip/leg kicking action) to assist the lift. Unless you are specifically training a kipping action power style pull up then this is just cheating. If you cannot perform the rep without assisting yourself by kicking to help you up and over then it is too difficult for you and you should regress the lift to a more appropriate level of difficulty.

What variations of the pull up do you use in your own training?

I am mainly training progressions towards one arm chin ups (OAC's). I use single arm eccentric work; lowering myself as slowly as possible using 1 arm only. And assisted OAC's, with my non-lifting arm helping me to lift by holding a rope with a small weight on the other end looped over the bar. This weighted rope allows me to get just enough assistance to perform the desired number of OAC's. I also enjoy the more gymnastic style lever progressions, starting with the simple but effective L-sit varieties. Coach Sommer has a excellent progression system for building up to these in his book Building The Gymnastic Body.

Good stuff, I can definitely second that recommendation for Building The Gymnastic Body. Ok so where can someone take their training if they can already perform 10+ pull ups?

You could just hang progressively larger weights off yourself whilst doing your pull ups but I find it far more interesting to start playing about with body lever progressions and OAC progressions as outlined in question 4. The skills developed in the quest for these more advance options transfer superbly to sporting performance and all around upper body function. The lever variations also transform the pull up into a full body exercise that will have you holding your abs and rolling around on the floor wondering why you ever wasted your time with crunches.

Above all it keeps things varied, using a variety of different grips angles and grip widths along with different pull angles and body levers. This give endless permutations and progressions to play with. This variety is not just good for mental sanity but builds a very well rounded strength in all positions.

Some really good insights there, thanks for sharing, last but not least tell us where people can contact you if they want to learn more about the services you offer?

If people have any questions or want to get in touch the best place to reach me is at www.testlondon.com

Thanks Rob, pleasure speaking to you.

Damien Walters 2011 Official Showreel

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 10:35:00 GMT

Outstanding....

Explosive Bodyweight Exercise Video...

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 10:06:00 GMT

I stumbled upon this well-shot video over the weekend and it compliments an article I wrote a short while back about using bodweight exercises to develop power. Check it out for more examples of explosive bodyweight movement. Enjoy....