Category Archives: Let’s Train

Articles and tips on training, as well as workouts.

How To Do A Kettlebell Swing – And Why YOU Should Be Doing Them

Posted on by
Reply

Today I’m going to talk a little bit about why kettlebells are SO awesome AND I’m going to teach you how to do the exercise that I consider to be the foundation of kettlebell training, the swing.

Lance Armstrong Swings A Kettlebell - CREDIT: Art Streiber/Men's Health

Lance Armstrong Swings A Kettlebell - CREDIT: Art Streiber/Men's Health

Kettlebells blend strength, cardio, and mobility into one super-efficient workout. The kettlebell swing is the foundation of kettlebell training. It is an explosive movement that works the posterior chain (glutes and hamstrings) like no other. If you want amazing butt, this is one my top picks for getting one. I also love single leg squats and single leg deadlifts for getting your rear end looking right. Continue reading →

New Age of Fitness Training

Posted on by
Reply

Once Again, It’s Time For Change

I have been in the fitness industry since 1982 when I joined my first gym and also worked the front desk while helping members with their workouts.  Gyms were much different back then. We had a full line of the original Nautilus machines, tons of free weights, dumbbells, cable machines, squat stands (not racks), a weightlifting platform, and absolutely no cardio equipment. Rock music blasted the stereo and the mirrors were always fogged up from the humidity. This was a serious bodybuilding gym where Mike and Ray Mentzer would often pop in for a workout using High Intensity Training and putting on a great show posing for us. 

…I told my kettlebell class to grab a sandbag, a kettlebell, and get ready to do some TRX exercises as well. This moment changed the way me and my clients performed our workouts forever.

Fitness has changed a lot since then.  Now, we hear about Crossfit, core and functional training, Tabata Intervals, and the list goes on. Gyms like LA Fitness are much different now than my first gym in 1982 and mostly a social outlet with a lot of fluff and more cardio machines than anything. I never did get a decent workout at these types of gyms.

Continue reading →

Short on Time? Burn Over 400 Calories In Just 20 Minutes

Posted on by
Reply

Even The Quickest, Most Basic Kettlebell Workout Will Melt Your Fat Off Like Butter

There was a study done by Ace Fitness, led by John Porcari, Ph.D., and Chad Schnettler, M.S., at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse Exercise and Health Program. After taking baselines of their test subjects (another word for guinea pigs) based on a treadmill workout and a five-minute snatch routine, these 10 kettlebell-experienced volunteers, male and female, between the ages of 29-46, performed a 20-minute basic kettlebell snatch routine. A 12kg, 16kg, or 20kg kettlebell was used, depending on gender, weight, and experience level of each subject.

If you don’t feel like doing the math, we’ve done it for you. This workout will cost you 404 calories. And they can keep the change… because, don’t forget, that your body will continue to burn some calories for some time after your workout.

Here are the 20-minute workout details:

Continue reading →

It’s All In The Wrist

Posted on by
Reply

Wrapping Your Wrist May Save Your Noggin

I’ve never dropped a kettlebell during a workout. Well, except when I’m doing some kettlebell juggling… but other than that, I’ve never lost my grip on one unless it was to intentionally squash a cockroach. (Ok, I’ve never actually used it for such crude (yet satisfying) purposes. I just thought I’d go with a little imagery. Work with me here.)

Goofy Man Doing Aerobics With Sweatbands On

Sweatbands May Work, But They Won't Necessarily Make You Look Cool

A common fear among people who first hear of the Russian kettlebell is that, surely, it must be dangerous. Well, first of all, don’t call me Shirley. Um, sorry. Second, the cool thing about kettlebells is the fact that, the more you work out with them, the stronger your grip gets. This, in turn, greatly reduces the chances of your ever losing control of the beast.

It’s for this second reason, among other reasons, that I always encourage my students to master the two handed swing first, followed by the one handed swing. They on swinging the kettlebell higher as the confidence level allows. Once they are comfortable with swinging the kettlebell, they then progress to snatches for the overhead action. The reason I tell you this is to back the fact that, as long as you start off at ground floor with the two-handed swing and progress from there and avoiding working to failure, losing your grip should never be an issue, even for a beginner.

Continue reading →

Sledgehammer + Truck Tire = Hours of Fun

Posted on by
Reply

Sledgehammers Can Add To Your Functional Strength

An old fire captain once said to me, “the hardest thing you will ever do as a firefighter , is chop a hole in a roof”. Of course, I never gave it much thought until I actually had to do it. Then all I heard was his voice in my head… over and over and over… For anyone who has done it, you know what I’m talking about. It’s a miserably difficult task. Fire axes are dulled for a reason, so they don’t stick into things when you hit them. The ax is mostly for destroying things. So, imagine trying to cut through a couple courses of asphalt shingles, a water and ice barrier, and finally 5/8” plywood… all while balancing on a pitched roof. This is truly a “functional” task. You use every muscle in your body to complete this task.

“the hardest thing you will ever do as a firefighter, is chop a hole in a roof”

Now you are probably asking yourself, “don’t they have power saws for that?” The answer is: yes we do; a couple actually; one is a quick vent saw, which is like a chain saw on steroids, and another saw called the K-12, which is another beast the cuts just about everything. But sometimes there aren’t enough saws to go around, and a lot of ventilation holes need to be opened. So we improvise, adapt and overcome. This is where your fitness training plays a big role.

For anyone who has done it, you know what I’m talking about. It’s a miserably difficult task…

Hammering Out A Workout.

Hammering Out A Workout.

So I came up with a fairly simple drill , that addresses this. You won’t need any fancy equipment, or shiny machines. All you need is a sledgehammer and a truck tire. A car tire will work as well, but a truck tire gives you a little more to work with, plus it wont move around when you hit it. The nice part about this is, it can apply to homeowner or firefighter. The home owner (standing aside of the tire) is simulating any swinging type activity, from chopping or splitting wood to digging a trench in his yard. The firefighter (standing atop the tire, balancing) it simulates chopping that vent hole in a roof.

Continue reading →

Rewriting The Software

Posted on by
Reply

Sometimes, All You Need Is A Little Reboot For Your Workout

A wise man once said to me, “The body is like a computer… the skeleton and the muscles are the hardware, and the brain and central nervous system is the software”. Though I have much respect for this man and all that he says, he must have seen the “here we go” look on my face as well as the eye roll, so he continued. “Think about this…whenever you learn a new skill, it’s like installing a new program into your computer. Sometimes that new program runs correctly the first time; other times, it conflicts with existing software, and the bugs have to be worked out.

I train new kettlebell “victims” all the time, so I can draw on personal experiences with this, that even with no weight in their hand, most people have a very difficult time with the muscular coordination aspect of the Turkish get up. There is a lot going on there. Most people can’t get their body and brain on the “same page of music”. They flounder around like a wounded animal.

So I thought about what he said for a while, and, just like that, I had an epiphany (that is a 10 dollar word for “it just dawned on me”, but with a little more drama). Skill…software. Body… hardware. It was all starting to make sense. As we all know, strength is a skill that can be taught and learned…or, perhaps, installed.

I am writing this article because I have seen and experienced this theory first hand. Anyone who has trained with any type of conventional resistance programs, and then has tried kettlebells, knows exactly what I am talking about.

Continue reading →

Don’t Get Burned… Kettlebells To The Rescue

Posted on by
Reply

Firefighters, Insure Your Career And Life With Kettlebells

Well, I’m here to attest to you, fellow brothers and sisters of the fire service, that the answer to these problems facing you is a lot simpler than you think. It’s nothing new. In fact, its “old school”. It’s nothing fancy, and to say it comes with no fluff would be an understatement. If you are not familiar or heard of Russian kettlebells and Pavel Tsatouline, the time is now.

If you, like just about every other department out there, are strapped for available space, cash, and time, your answer is here. The Russian kettlebell is the perfect solution.

If you have room in your firehouse to lay down a standard piece of plywood (4’x8’), then you have a decent size space to work out in. The space has to be clear of clutter and have overhead clearance, but you don’t need hundreds of square feet.

As for price, the money you will spend on, say, three kettlebells of various sizes, will be a mere fraction of what any of the new “infomercial” driven exercise gadgets that are out there that make promises as empty as your pockets.

Continue reading →

Wrestling Drills For Strength And Conditioning

Posted on by
Reply

Get Into Shape While Improving Your Wrestling Skills

…wrestling, like lifting heavy weights, is necessary for a strong, healthy, virile body.

Wrestling is a sport based on shoving, grabbing, slamming, pinning, and otherwise controlling an unwilling opponent. Although many other sports, such as football or rugby, incorporate these strategies to some degree, it is the primary goal of the wrestler. It is easy to see then these guys are some tough SOBs. In fact, wrestling has been one of the primary means of demonstrating manhood across cultures and throughout history. From Icelandic glima to Japanese sumo to Turkish oil-wrestling almost every culture has had some indigenous form of grappling. A quick read through anything written by early European and American physical culturists such as Hackenschmidt, Leiderman, and Sandow will reveal a consensus – that wrestling, like lifting heavy weights, is necessary for a strong, healthy, virile body. However, at some point this connection between strength, physique, and wrestling was severed leaving many guys with buffed-out beach body muscles they couldn’t use to defend themselves if they had to.

The intent of this article is not to make anyone feel insecure or start some sort of physical culture revolution. My goal is to reintroduce some exercises and training methods were lost to the strength and bodybuilding world when lifting and wrestling parted ways. These exercises are designed not only to build strength and endurance, but also to add some mental toughness and competitiveness to a possibly stagnant training program. Incorporating some of these drills into your program will work your muscles in ways you didn’t know possible – and also to reconnect with your inner barbarian. So read this article, watch Conan, and then give these exercises a try.

Continue reading →

Swimsuits & Sledgehammers

Posted on by
Reply

Sometimes The Best Workout Is Not The One You’re Doing

Join Coach Jamie Hale as he helps a swimsuit model get into shape for her next photoshoot, discusses the effective use of sledgehammers in one competitive bodybuilder’s workout, and answers one boxer’s question as to whether or not it is necessary to jog more than three miles a day.

Q:

I am a swimsuit model and I am getting ready for a photo shoot in January. My agent told me I need to get leaner before the shoot. At this time I weight train 3 days per week, walk on the treadmill 4 days per week 60 minutes, and I eat a low fat diet. This doesn’t seem to be working. How do I get learner? My friend Amanda lost a tremendous amount of bodyfat in one month following your program this is why I am coming to you.

– C. A., San Diego, CA

A:

To optimize your training and nutritional program I would need to ask you a variety of questions and get some specific information in regards to your history, training, nutrition, etc.. A few general suggestions I can make are as follows.

1) Perform mostly multi-joint weight training movements

2) Forget the lowfat diet (look at a diet that is high in protein, moderate fat, low in carbohydrates)

3) Perform high intensity endurance work (Aerobic endurance with anaerobic endurance- also perform lactate threshold training).

Amanda followed the Adipose x program specifically designed to maximize work threshold, and fat loss in short time period. The workout is generally performed 3-4 weeks. The workout can be purchased at www.maxcondition.com. The program is not for beginners. My clients have made significant gains with the program. It is also a favorite program of combat athletes.

Q:

Coach Hale I recently purchased a weightlifting program from you and I noticed a bunch of tumbling drills in the program. How will that help my Olympic Weightlifting?

– R. H., London, England

Continue reading →