Get out of the gym! Try this fun workout that you can do outside with no gym equipment.

Get out for your workout. Find a campground, a park, a trail or even your backyard to enjoy beautiful summer and fall workouts outside!

"I went into the woods because I wished to live deliberately" - Henry David Thoreau.

On those beautiful summer days, there is no reason to be stuck in a hot, dingy gym when you can get your workout done outside. Here is the second installment in alternative workouts that can be done anywhere. All you need for this one is a rock (or other object with some heft to it). I recommend choosing a rock that you can squat-to-overhead-press about 15 times before feeling fatigued. This will likely range from about 10 lbs to 35 lbs depending on your age, size, gender, fitness, etc. If you start out with the wrong size, you can always adjust the weight appropriately.

Start out with an easy warm up jog- about 15 minutes.

1) 100 meter forward rock throw. Starting with the rock at your chest, squat down and jump upward while pushing the rock (and release) forward. Jog to rock, repeat. Remember to bend down and pick up the rock using your legs to lift, not your back. After several reps, improper lifting can put strain on your back.
**Advanced- complete the rock throw uphill.
Jog back to start after 100m and take a 2 minute rest.

2) 30m burpee broad jump. These are just what they sound like. Complete a burpee (with full pushup) and then complete a broad jump forward. I find generally 30 m is about 11 or 12 cycles.
A modification to make this a little easier would be to eliminate the push up (instead completing a squat thrust in place of the full burpee).
2 minute rest

3) 100 bodyweight squats. Try to complete as many as possible without resting. Minimize rest between reps when rest is needed.

Feet should be shoulder width (or even a little more) apart.  

4) 20 reverse rock throws. Starting at chest height (palms up), throw the rock overhead behind you and release. Tighten your abdominal muscles to ensure you are engaging your core muscles to do this. If you are concerned that you might cluck yourself in the head with the rock, choose a lighter rock.
2 min rest.

5) 30 clean and press with rock. Start with rock just above the ground in squatting position. As you move to standing, bring rock up through chest and finish with arms extended overhead as you come to a full standing position.

6) 50 bodyweight squats (again, not a typo). Try to complete as many as possible without resting within set, otherwise, minimize rest between reps when rest is needed.
* If you feel you need a little more challenge, grab your rock!
1 minute rest.

7) 50 Step ups with rock. Use a bench, stable log, or rock and step up with one leg at a time finishing each rep with full extension and both feet on top of object at the top of the step-up (without locking out knee). 25 reps with each leg.

2 minutes rest.

Repeat cycle 2-5 times.

Train Hard. Play hard. Be awesome. Happy trails.

Summer is fleeting. Don't let it pass you by.

Book Review: Foundation Training

I had seen Foundation Training come up a few times and wondered what it was about.  The name is catchy, and since I base my training on building the core, or building a foundation to work from, I just had to see what it was all about.  I found the book on Amazon, and since it was fairly inexpensive, I bought it.  Honestly, I thought I would be getting a program with the same core stabilization exercises I use, but in a different order, or slight variation.  What I found was far from what I expected.

Foundation Training: Redefine Your Core, Conquer Back Pain, and Move With Confidence by Dr. Eric Goodman and Peter Park is far from the ordinary.  The exercises are all bodyweight, and can be done anywhere.  The workouts begin simple and have three stages of progression. While the focus of the book is on back pain, I feel as though it is very important to use these exercises for back pain prevention, core stability, and flexibility.   The other main focus is on posture and teaching correct movement patterns.

As we do more sitting in our daily lives, at work, the car, or at home, we are creating poor posture.  Our bodies are not designed to sit.  The results are a underactive posterior chain of muscles, internally rotated shoulders, and a forward leaning head.  These all lead to back pain, poor hip function, and knee issues.

Information handed down from Physical Therapists and Sports Science has taught us something very important about the core: it is not all about the abdomen.  Foundation Training redefines the core, stating that it is primarily the posterior chain that supports the body.  This statement is supported by the latest science, so if you are still doing endless crunches, sit ups, or ab dominant core workouts, STOP NOW!  You are creating dysfunction that will lead to injury.

Foundation trains you to use your most powerful muscles properly, creating lasting power and flexibility throughout the most important areas of your body.

Foundation training also teaches correct movement patterns.  Once you get the hang of the simple exercises, you will be moving far better, especially while squatting, where many people have difficulties.  After just a couple of workouts, you will have a better posture.  As I have incorporated Foundation Training into my workouts, as well as my clients and athletes, we have all noticed feeling taller.

Rather than taxing the muscles that are not meant to work so hard, you will learn to move in a way that allows the posterior chain to do its job with integrated, powerful movement.

The book begins with a great explanation of what is going on with your core, movement patterns, and posture.  There are great pictures which also show muscles being used.  The book ends with a chapter on Foundation Lifestyle, and a chapter Training The Foundation Way.

This book is a must have for anyone who has any amount of back pain.  It is also a must have if you spend a lot of time sitting for work or driving.  Foundation Training is good for anyone from the unconditioned person starting a fitness routine, to the elite athlete.  I find Foundation Training to be an invaluable addition to my core strength program.

Buy the book: Foundation Training