Want To Get Better? Leave Your Gym Ego At The Door
By admin
First things first… stop with the badass exercises and go back to the basics.
Badass exercises??
You know, the exercises that you perform not because they are the best, but because they make you feel like a fitness badass. Moves that are so complex that people watching have their jaws drop to the ground, not from being impressed but because they can’t help but wonder…
“What the hell is that person doing?”
For me, a pistol squat is my badass move. I’ve mentioned it before, but when I do them I feel stronger and confident.
I’ve even put together a progression on doing pistols, since I’ve received lots of request on help.
The thing is though… they suck for your joints. Talk about putting a ton of stress on the knees! These do. I’ve actually don’t do them as often because I am working on keeping my knees healthy (especially with the amount of running I do).
Which brings me to the important thing…
Exercise today has gotten more about how far can you take your body? How often can you leave a workout not necessarily feel great physically but at least like a badass for doing moves/workout that others can’t?
Exercise is suppose to make you feel great, it’s suppose to leaving refreshed!
To help stress my point, I have the “Functional Guru”, Mike Boyle on today’s podcast to help explain this whole fitness thing.
If you don’t know who Mike is, he’s basically a mentor to all personal trainers. He has over 40 years of experience under his belt, and coaches everyone from professional athletes to everyday folk on a daily basis.
In fact, right now he is training the US Women’s Hockey Team as they shape up for the Olympics! Pretty cool, right?
To say he knows a thing or two is an understatement. When Mike talks, we should all listen.
In today’s What The Fitness he shares…
- What is functional training and how does it fit into your day to day life?
- What’s the worst type of exercises for women to perform?
- When getting started, what are the key, fundamental moves that everyone should be doing?
- What machines you should never ever touch in your gym?
- What are the key components to a fitness program that not only deliver results but improve your overall health/body? Exercise shouldn’t wear down your joints and cause delayed aches!
And more!
If you don’t have the opportunity to listen right now, there are a few major points I want to stress that we discussed…
- Sometimes the most basic of moves are the ones that work the best: squats, split squats, push-ups, etc.
- Women often lack upper body strength, and therefore have to work a bit harder to do moves like push-ups. Its okay to start with dumbbell bench press to help develop the muscles used so that you can start pumping them out like a Marine. If you’re ready to work on push-ups, use this push-up progression chart to help.
- Flexibility is key. Have a hurt back? Sore knees? Changes are there is an flexibility issue going on that needs to be addressed. Get a foam roller and use it!
- Gym machines are a waste of time and money. You don’t do these moves in day to day life and because of that you won’t develop the overall strength you would if you used standard training moves.
- The body doesn’t work proportionally so don’t train that way. Instead focus on uneven moves like 1-legged squats, step-ups, etc. Causing imbalance means you have to recruit more muscles and train the area to their specific abilities.
- I can’t give everything away… listen in
As a trainer, it’s important that I continue to learn more, and keep up with the most up to date information. That is why I started studying Mike and his philosophies when I first began training and I have continued to follow him years later.
If you’re a trainer, check out his courses. If you’re looking to be trained and live in the Boston area, check out his facilities! AND…. if you’re looking to be trained but don’t live in the Boston area, check out Fit Womens Weekly!
Once gain, thanks Mike for your time, passion, and knowledge!
Do you have a mentor/guru in your line of work?
Do you do any exercises that you know are probably not that great for you?