Whip Six Womens Active Running, Triathlon, Cyclist Apparel

I had so much fun answering these questions, you guys are good. Real good!

I’ll try to do this more often and some of these questions truly deserve their very own blog post (did you check out JR’s question/answer post last week?)

What I loved most was how all over the place the questions were! Curious? Let’s do this…

Katarzyna Asked:

Great question and I feel terrible that I don’t mention it in my workout posts. I guess I assume everyone has his/her own warm-up strategy.

But yes! I do warm-up.

I generally spend 5-10 minutes doing light movements that mimic the workout I’ll be doing. Body weight squats, jumping jacks, lunges, push-ups and kettlebell swings are my go-tos.

Over at FitWomensWeekly, I start all of our workouts with quick total body warm-ups!

As for a cool-down, I’ll be honest with you. I don’t cool down as much as I should. This is one of those do as I say, not as I do. I 100% believe in it and believe that stretching and foam rolling is extremely beneficial for recovery.

My husband is the cool-down king, and has created some amazing post workout stretch sessions. I’ll ask if he’ll put one together!

Here are a few helpful post in warm-ups and cool-downs I’ve written in the past:

• 10 Rules For A Great Warm-up And Cool-Down
• A Quick Pre-Race Warm-up Leads To New PR
• 10 Reasons To Stretch That You Haven’t Heard
• The Importance Of Stretching After A Workout
• How To Stretch After Your Workout

Great question! Yes, it is possible to gain muscle without a gym. You simply have to get creative with your moves and continuously push yourself just as you would if you were using weights at a gym.

For example…

The pull-up bar is a great tool for adding muscle! Playing with hand position can help not only increase back strength but also bicep (chin-ups), triceps and even core. Keep the cadence of the moves slow, and focus on “deadman pull-ups” where you are at a full hang at the bottom before pulling up. Keep the pace on the down going slow enough where you’re only about to do 4-6 reps. Rest for 90 seconds to 3 minutes between sets and aim for 3-5!

As for other body weight moves, you simply have to focus more on intense body weight moves that challenges the body where you’re not focusing on muscular endurance (like doing 20 push-ups) but overall strength and muscle hypertrophy. Moves you can’t do past 8 reps.

Here are a few of my favorite advanced body weight moves:

1. Pistol Squats
2. Pull-ups
3. Divebombers
4. Handstands
5. Split Squats
6. Toes 2 Bar

But I would also recommend perhaps one more purchase of a heavier weight… a kettlebell maybe?!!

Advanced Body Weight Exercises

• Advanced Ab Moves
• Pistol Squat Progression
• 25 Best Exercises

Hope that helps!

Next comes from my friend Lindsay, AKA, “Cotter, the Comedian”…

Funny… I totally set myself up for that one. She’s lucky I love her. See answer here!

Moving on…

Thanks Mary! Love all of them.

The ACV is still going on (not sure what I’m talking about?). I have continued drinking a tablespoon of vinegar each morning. I am not sure if there is a difference in my body but the benefits are too great to not just keep with the habit I created. If nothing else, It’ helping me to start my day with a glass of water, which is a big change for me (I can go all day without drinking a sip). It gets a thumbs up!

The certifications are basically like personal trainers. There are different organizations you can go through and it depends on the person, the time you can commit to studying and the price. I loved Kettlebells Athletics which was put together by Jason C Brown.

But I also knew that I always get RKC as well which was the original certification, developed by the head kettlebell guru, Pavel Tsatsouline. It’s kind of a big deal in the kettlebell world and though it’s not cheap, it’s worth it.

And #3, I love Cindy Crawford and her openness! Rock it lady! I think it’s great when a woman of her status can stand up and say “this is me, I’ve had kids. I’ve aged and I look great!” Last week an untouched picture of the model was leaked. You can see it here! 

Sheena gets the award for best question ever!

It’s funny you asked because Dan and I have talked about this a lot over the years.

I have to share his because its the best… he wishes he had the power to refill any empty jar with it’s original contents. You only have to buy one of everything, ever! Empty M&M jar? Snap and it’s magically refilled!

As for me… I wish I had the power to suck the calories out of food. Just kidding, just came up with that one.

For real, I think it would be cool to teleport. I am in my car way too much and I always wish I could close my eyes and open them where I want to be.

Oh goodness Stacy, thank you for the credit but I have to admit I am still working on building the business and brand! This is an ongoing challenge and there are times I feel the same as you!

I didn’t hire anyone but Dan is amazing when it comes to learning. He is always studying and taking online courses. I should be better at this but he shares his knowledge and ideas!

I will say that the biggest factor that helped me increase traffic was networking. Simply meeting other bloggers and becoming friends with them via their blogs with comments and social medial. Sharing, commenting, and supporting other!

Blend Retreat a few years ago was the best blog event for me (if you’re thinking about going to an event) since we’re able to spend more one on one time with each other. Over the years since, I’ve become very close with the ladies I met. It is funny how you can become friends with people you never see!

Also, guest posts are really great. Reach out to bloggers that are bigger than you and offer to write a great, unique post.

And don’t be afraid to think outside of the box! Make an effort to create posts that helps people with a problem while at the same time opening up about yourself. I feel that the best bloggers are those that share a little of themselves in each post.

Keep pushing ahead and you’ll see results!

Okay friends… that’s it! If I didn’t answer your question, it’s not because it wasn’t good. I have a few that I want to make into full posts like the Wrist Exercise post last week. Deal?

And if you still have a question, let me know!

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