Category Archives: General Training

Articles, workouts, and tips that are general in nature.

New Age of Fitness Training

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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.

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

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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:

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Rewriting The Software

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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.

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Swimsuits & Sledgehammers

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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

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