Stress Is Growth
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Purpose stems from struggle, not from comfort.
Chronic stress is a genuine concern in our current environment. Continuous "fight-or-flight" responses and prolonged cortisol exposure plague countless individuals, and their health and body composition suffers. I wish to acknowledge that at the start. However, this article won't delve into stress management or reduction. This article is not about taking phosphatidylserine or preventing overtraining. Some of what you will read is dead-serious, some hyperbole, and a little satire, but do not let that get in the way of the overall point: we need stress. Fitness via Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/1hdUh1E November 28, 2018 at 10:03AM
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Still Training with Furniture Sliders
https://ift.tt/2Ql7Zdm It was almost 10 years ago when I first demonstrated how an inexpensive pair of furniture sliders could be used as an effective exercise tool. Long time readers of the site may remember that old YouTube video. It was just me, a low-resolution camcorder, and a 4-pack of sliders that cost around $10. Looking back, plenty has changed since that video, but one thing that remains the same are my sliders. I still own the same set and they still work as good as new. Furniture Slider Exercise DemoBelow, you’ll see a recent demonstration of the sliders in action, and then I’ll answer questions that I’ve seen on social media since sharing the video this week. Commonly Asked QuestionsWhere can I purchase furniture sliders?Furniture sliders are typically easy to find at general merchandise stores such as Walmart or Target. You can also find them at home improvement retailers such as Home Depot or Lowe’s. If you prefer shopping online, here’s a link to a 4-pack on Amazon. What size are your sliders?The ideal dimensions for sliders to be used for exercise are 9-1/2 x 5-3/4 inches. Do the sliders work on surfaces other than carpet?There are sliders designed for other surfaces (ex. wood flooring), but I recommend those that can be used on carpet. I’ve refinished wood floors before and I wouldn’t want to be constantly sliding back and forth on nice wood. There’s no need to wear away the finish of your wood floors when you could roll out a thin strip of carpet instead. Can’t I do the same thing with socks on a wood floor?
Whenever I demonstrate sliders, someone asks if the same exercises can be replicated by with a pair socks on wood floors. My response to these inquiries is always the same. Socks will work to an extent. The difference between a sock and slider is significant however. I have used both and sliders are infinitely more versatile and durable. Socks aren’t nearly as useful for many of the faster paced exercises. You also won’t find a $10 pair of socks that will last 10 years. I’m lucky to get six months out of a pair of socks and that’s just wearing them in shoes. My sliders don’t seem to slide as fast as yours. What can I do?One of the easiest ways to get more speed out of your sliders is to apply a few drops of a water glass repellent. Rain-X is one such product that can be found in the automotive section of most general merchandise stores. Working from a thin carpet is also preferable. Thicker carpets will reduce the speed of the sliders. How do sliders compare to the ab wheel?I’m often asked how sliders compare to the ab wheel, but the two are actually quite different. Although you can perform rollouts with each, that’s where the similarities end. Sliders allow for a much wider range of exercises. I also find sliders to be more convenient when traveling. As a boxing coach, I’m often working at fights around the world. I never leave home without my sliders. They are easily tucked into a suitcase without taking up extra space or adding any significant weight to your bag. You’ll be hard pressed to find a better tool for hotel training. Final ThoughtsIn summary, I created the revised video above for two reasons. One was to introduce new readers of the site to an old idea. Perhaps more importantly though, I enjoy demonstrating how effective ideas from the past don’t need to expire. As a professional coach, I don’t care if an exercise is old or new. I’m only concerned with whether it works. One of the biggest myths of the fitness industry is that new always equals better. That couldn’t be further from the truth. The age of an exercise or tool is irrelevant when considering its value. Some of the best ideas you’ll find come from the past. My old sliders are a perfect example. They work just as good today as they did 10 years ago, and my athletes and I still benefit from their use. I hope to get another 10 years out of them. Related Entry: +++++
The post Still Training with Furniture Sliders appeared first on RossTraining.com. Fitness via RossTraining.com https://ift.tt/yhOp7p November 27, 2018 at 03:22PM
Welcome Brooks Monroe (a birth story)
https://ift.tt/2E173F0 On October 25th, we joyfully welcomed the arrival of our third son into the world, Brooks Monroe Beaugh! I truly can’t believe that my water has broken on my due date TWICE now (Grayson was also born on his due date). I guess, if anything, my kids sure are punctual! I have been really wanting to share our birth story with you guys forever now but seriously have underestimated, ummm, having time to do anything with three little kids. ? Every time I sat down to write this, it just never happened. Well, my two older boys are in school right now and for the time being Brooks is sleeping peacefully in his bassinet, so here we go! On October 25th I felt SO tired. Like, insanely tired. My mom and I went to Target (funny that I think of this now because I have walked Target the day before going into labor with all three of my kids now – there’s something to it!) and then I just laid on the couch and rested during the afternoon. I almost canceled the massage I had booked that evening because I was just feeling so tired and weary from being so […] The post Welcome Brooks Monroe (a birth story) appeared first on Eat, Live, Run. Fitness via Eat, Live, Run https://ift.tt/y0FVtg November 27, 2018 at 03:13PM
Get the December 2018 Issue of ‘Muscle & Fitness’
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Chris Nicoll
The December issue of Muscle & Fitness features the workout tips, muscle-building recipes, and motivation you need to overhaul your physique this winter. From new exercises that build sleeve-busting arms, to pro tips for building total-body symmetry like our cover star and Men's Classic Physique Olympia runner-up, Chris Bumstead, it's all in the pages of this month's M&F. In this issue, we also reflect on this past year's fitness highlights, from the 2018 Olympic Games to September's Olympia. Once you're feeling good and motivated, turn to any of our workout routines to start working toward your goals. Whether you're looking for workouts you can do outside of the gym or powerlifting-style programs that require some serious iron, we guarantee you'll find something that piques your interest. Plus, you'll get the recipes and nutrition know-how to accompany your hard work in the gym. And since Muscle & Fitness also incorporates FLEX, you'll find even more training and diet tips to help you make serious gains in the gym. In this issue, Hall of Fame bodybuilder and Olympia webcast commentator Shawn Ray gives his final thoughts on the 2018 Mr. Olympia competition. Plus, get the advanced tweaks you can make to your workouts for more size and strength. For the latest training methods, no matter where you are on the fitness spectrum, we've got it all right here in Muscle & Fitness and FLEX. GET THE NEW ISSUE OF MUSCLE & FITNESS ON NEWSSTANDS NOW!
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz November 27, 2018 at 03:07PM
Two Sandbag Workouts You Can Do in Less Than 30 Minutes
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Edgar Artiga
If you've got an old duffel bag stashed in your closet and a sandbox in your backyard, you’re unknowingly sitting on a fitness goldmine. Throw a bunch of sand in the bag, zip it up, and you’ve created one of the greatest strength and conditioning tools known to man: a sandbag. “The sandbag isn’t just another free weight,” says Matthew Palfrey, a sandbag-training specialist in Sydney, Australia, and owner of Sandbag Fitness (sandbagfitnessstore.com). “Because of the constantly moving center of mass, you’ll have to fight hard to control the bag when using it. This develops great grip strength and stability. And when performing exercises overhead, you’ll need plenty of core strength to maintain your technique. It’s this simplicity that attracts many people to the sandbag, because you can get a lot of bang for your buck.” Ego alert: You won’t be able to use as much weight with a sandbag on a given exercise as you’d use for its barbell, dumbbell, or machine counterpart. The dimensions of the sandbag, its unbalanced and shifting load, and its less ergonomic (or completely absent) handles will collectively make 50 pounds feel like a hundred, if not more. [RELATED1] “People are often put off by sandbag training because on Day 1 they find themselves working with this dynamic free weight that doesn’t cooperate,” Palfrey says. “It’s demoralizing to suddenly drop 50% of what you can normally lift for an exercise. But stick with it. Training with a sandbag will pay dividends.” No sandbox at home? No problem. A bag of sand at a home-improvement store is insanely cheap. (Think: $4 for a 50-pound bag.) And you can buy a sandbag specifically designed for training for as little as $50 online. For this photo shoot, we opted for a pancake sandbag, also known as a sandbell. It’s a little easier to maneuver—it’s a sphere, so it’s less cumbersome. This makes it great for slams, throws, and partner tosses, too. [RELATED2] For his money, Palfrey prefers a handleless sandbag. “A sandbag without handles provides a challenge like no other,” he says. “Sometimes even controlling the bag in a rack position is devastatingly tough when you’re tired, but that’s where one of the real benefits of sandbag training lies. It builds fortitude, and that’s one of the reasons they’ve been used in combat sports and by the military for so long.” Build your sandbag, build your fortitude. Go do it. THE SANDBAG WORKOUTSThe following routines can be performed with a sandbag of any size, but beginners should opt for a sandbag weighing approximately 15 to 30 pounds. Advanced trainees can use a 40-to-60-pound bag. And if you’re an experienced sandbagger (read: an absolute beast), you can try a 100-pound sandbag without handles for a serious challenge. “While the sandbag can absolutely be used for a whole range of exercises, I prefer to program sandbag exercises where you’ll be specifically challenged in controlling the bag," Palfrey says. "These workouts are built around complex, multijoint movements that tax the entire body and are supplemented with smaller accessory lifts.” Workouts designed by Matthew Palfrey [RELATED3]
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15 Foods You Need to Power Your Workouts
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9 Champion Bodybuilders Share Their Favorite Exercises
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Energize Your Willpower
https://ift.tt/2DNj9Rp With the holiday season upon us, family dinners, never-ending temptations, samples at Costco, cookies, turkey, cheesy potatoes, and a glass of wine or two, it is no wonder that most people pack on the pounds at the end of the year.
Most of us blame our “falling off the diet train” as an issue of willpower. I want to discuss the concept of willpower—what it is, and what it’s not—and what it means for gaining muscle. During a time of change, or tackling a new goal, we tend to attribute our successes and setbacks to “willpower.” This type of mentality can cause some significant problems, however. Since our setbacks are rooted so deeply in our feeling of self-worth, willpower becomes synonymous with “self-esteem” power. The lower we see our willpower, the lower our self-esteem becomes. This type of negative thinking cycle puts us even further away from our goals and has huge repercussions on how we feel about ourselves.
The Relationship Between Willpower and GoalsWe have all been there. We make a plan to “lose five pounds.” We get excited and motivated; we start to introduce some profound changes in our lives. Suddenly, life happens—a family event, a party at work, a slip in judgment, an injury—and we hit a temporary setback. In the grand scheme of things consistency always wins over perfection and that “setback” is meaningless. However we become panged with guilt, we don’t see it as a temporary lapse, oh no, it becomes a profound shift in our sense of self.
Photography By Jeffrey Perez of Oahu, Hawaii
Our inner critic pipes up and says: “you’re not strong enough,” “you don’t have enough motivation,” or “you’re so lazy.” Our brains also are experts at pattern recognition and as a result, these feelings are quickly followed with thoughts of all of our past experiences when we did not stick to a goal or finish a commitment. Suddenly this temporary setback leads to a negative shift in the sense of self. Our image of the type of person we are goes from a motivated warrior on their quest to success to “you are lazy, you have always been lazy, you will always be lazy, so why bother.” This negative thinking cycle can be very hard to break.
In order to get some clarity and control of the situation, I need you to challenge the traditional definition of willpower and consider what willpower is really about. In my own quest to do this, I turned to a book by Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D. called the Willpower Instinct and came away with some great insights and tools to add some pump to our willpower muscles.
According to Dr. McGonigal, willpower is not a “virtue or a moral trait,” it is not something that you have or you don’t have. Willpower lives in particular brain structures, most notably the pre-frontal cortex. It is a biological response controlled by the brain and the best part of all is that willpower is a strength that you can train.
Willpower and Your BrainOur brain shifts back and forth between two modes of operation. One mode is considered the “ideal self or the rational self.” This is where most of us wish we always lived in. In this mode, we are able to be our most wise selves—we make smart choices, we think about our long-term goals, we predict the consequences of our choices, and we think about our values and make decisions consistent with them. These operations are primarily located in the prefrontal cortex and are also where “willpower” lives. This part of the brain remembers what’s important to you and what you want while it monitors where your attention is relative to your goals. Training WillpowerOne of the best ways to shift into ideal self-mode and enhance willpower is through a regular habit of meditation. You are practicing willpower every time you meditate because meditation engages every system of willpower—you have a goal (to meditate), you are paying attention to what is happening in your mind and body that is moving you away from your goal (noticing when your attention has drifted from your breath), and then choose to act with intention in accordance with your goal (redirecting your attention back to your breath). Ironically, it's better if you are “bad” at meditation because it gives you lots of opportunities to practice your willpower.
To activate pause and plan, deliberately slow your breath down to six breaths a minute. This corresponds to about 7-8 seconds for every inhale and 7-8 seconds for every exhale. When we are breathing this slowly and with focused awareness, your heart rate will slow down, your heart rate variability increases and your brain will be sending energy to the prefrontal cortex, and not the flight or fight system. Perfect! You are slowed down and feeling alert, connected to your rational mind, and ready to act with intention. I suggest that we practice this form of slower, focused breathing several times throughout the day for two benefits: first, you will feel calmer and more centered again each time, and second, you are strengthening the pause and plan response so that when you need to activate it, you can more do so more readily.
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The 16 Best Physiques in Video Games
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