Total Body Transformation Training Blog

Hindu Squats are a hallmark of mixed martial arts training and their brutal
cousins, the back break fall (koho ukemi) and deck squat are longtime
torturers in Japanese hard style aikido and judo dojos.

But unlike traditional weighted squats -- front squats, back squats, sumo
squats and the like -- the Hindu squat is a strength endurance movement.
Hindu squats are done for high reps over a brief period of time. Think in
the 100s. Because of this, over the long term you don't get the same type
of leg development in the quads and hamstrings as you do from weighted
squats. This isn't a strength movement.

If you're new to Hindu squats, you'll initially feel fatigued and it's
common to overdue it and find yourself with a bad case of DOMS (delayed
onset muscle soreness) the next few days. Walking may not be easy. The best
advice? Walk. Stretch. Move. Steams and saunas. During this breaking in
period you'll experience some muscle growth -- your quads and hams weren't
used to working! But as the strength-endurance component takes over within
a week or so you'll end up with hard solid legs that don't bulk up but have
incredible strength and staying power if you stick to a regimen of Hindu
squats.

How many should you be shooting for? That depends. Hindu squats make a
great full body warm up and for that reason you may just want to work up to
100. Another approach is to time yourself and use a density approach and
increase the number of Hindu squats you can do over 15 minutes or so. Yet
another is Matt Furey's recommendation of the Gotch "Bible" and use a deck
of cards to alternate between that number of Hindu squats and push ups on
each card from a shuffled deck -- reds are squats, blacks are push ups.

Isometric Training

Isometric training found a new life with Pete Sisco and John Little's "Static Contraction" training. The basic idea is still the same -- stress your muscles by pushing or pulling against an immovable object. This can be made as easy or as difficult as you want. For example. You can grasp your palms and push against one another. You can press your palms overhead inside a doorway. You can maintain the top of a pushup.

Static Contraction training takes isometric training and adds a scientific aspect to it. Traditional strength training exercises are uses but for very short ranges of motion. A few inches and sometimes even less. The idea is to start just short of lockout and finish in the locked out position and then hold the wait. In such a position -- a "static contraction" -- you are able to hold much more weight than you would normally be able to lift through a full range of motion.

Isometric training and it's grown up cousin, static contraction training, can make you much stronger very quickly. The body adapts to the isometric holds and this improves overall strength through range of motion and strength-endurance as well.

0 Tolerance Fat Loss

The word "diet" should be struck from the dictionary. Everyone knows that diets are short-lived and quick fixes to a problem that often requires more of a lifestyle change in attitude and nutrition. That said, there are times when you just need to lose a few more pounds or put on some more muscle. Enter the 0 Tolerance Fat Loss program...

0 Tolerance is the brainchild of trainer Scott Mendelson and is very simple and very very effective. Most people will think it is very strict. But with the fat loss and fitness results you'll see it will all be worth it. Here are the basics:

WORKOUTS
==========

The 0 Tolerance workout program is 3 days a week of strength training and 2-3 days per week of cardio.

The cardiovascular training should be "High Intensity Interval Training" (HIIT) and last 20-30 minutes. Think sprints or alternating periods of walk/jog at increasing levels of intensity and/or speed.

Strength training is a split routine and limits the number of sets and reps to 2-5 set per body part and reps in the 8-12 range for upper body and 12-20 for lower body. Time under tension is used -- this means that you want to slowly and deliberately move the weight through the entire range of motion. You can experiment with different times, but start with 3-0-2 -- that's 3 seconds to "lower" the weight, no time to transition between raising and lowering, and 2 seconds to raise the weight.

NUTRITION
=========

Eat 3 times a day. Total protein intake is equal to 1g per pound of lean body mass. Unlimited vegetables. All meals combine protein, vegetables, and fat.

Fat intake is 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil per meal plus 2-4g of an EFA complex of Omega 3-6-9 oils. Split protein intake over the 3 meals.

Fiber - aim for 25-30g per day. Use FiberSmart or SuperFood as necessary to supplement

WEEK 1,3,5, ...
Avoid all starches, complex carbs, and fruit

WEEK 2,4,6, ...
After a workout consume a complex carb like oatmeal + Peanut butter along with a protein shake (40g of protein). Aim for 80-100g of carbohydrates in this post workout meal.

SUPPLEMENTS
============

No protein shakes or protein supplements during odd weeks. Protein is to come from whole foods like meat, fish, eggs, cottage cheese, etc.

In between meals, 3 times a day, supplement with Amino Acids as follows:
      5g glutamine
      6g BCAA
Last intake of aminos is 30 minutes or so before bedtime

At meal time, take 2-4g of EFA complex such as Alpha-Omega or Udo's Oil

QiQong Full Body Exercises

Qiqong (also known as chi kung, nei gung, and under a variety of different spellings) is a Chinese exercise system designed to systemically work the entire body and promote blood and energy flow. Like all bodyweight exercises, qiqong movements use coordinated deep breathing. Unlike hindu squats and bridges though, qiqong movements are typically static or slow. The next few entries will describe some fundamental qiqong exercises that will work the entire body.

Basic Qiqong - Holding a Ball
You cannot imagine a simpler exercise than this. Standing, feet shoulder width apart. Toes pointing forward or slightly out. Hands out in front of you like they are holding onto a large beach ball. Fingers are slayed and pointing toward one another. The whole body is relaxed. Hold this qiqong position for 1-30 minutes. That's it.

As with all qiqong exercises, breathing is important here. The mouth is closed, and the tongue is on the roof of your mouth resting gently. Breathing in and out through the nose using your diaphram. The abs are tight but not clenched. With an inhale, the stomach expands. With an exhale, the stomach contracts and concaves a bit. You should feel on the exhale the air rushing through the nose in a steady fashion and the abs pulling to touch the back of the spine.

The trick is to try and stay in place and not tense up. Focus on the breathing. Knees are bent, hands relaxed. Your shoulders will tense up -- focus on your breath. Your knees with tense -- return to the breath. This is a mindfullness and physical exercise.

full body warmup

Whether you are primarily a runner or a strength trainer you probably warm up much the same -- you do 5-10 minutes of light cardio. While this gets the heart rate and blood pumping it really only warms up the legs. If you follow up your warmup with stretching only the legs are getting the maximum benefit of the stretching.

A better approach is a full body warmup. Do 2-3 circuits of 3-5 full body exercises. The total time for the warmup is still 5-10 minutes but now the entire body has gotton a chance to be used while still raising the heart rate and getting the blood pumping. When you stretch, now all your muscles will be warm and not just your legs. Here are some example full body warmups:

Full Body Warmup #1 - Yoga Style
The Sun Salutation in any of its varities makes a great full body warmup. Do these Sun Salutations vinyasa style -- flowing from one movement to the another coordinating your breathing. At a minimum you should do mountain pose, reach up, swan dive down, monkey pose, forward bend, one leg back, high plank, low push up, cobra, downward facing down. Hold downward dog for 5 breaths, hop or step forward and repeat using the other leg for the one legged stretch.

Full Body Warmup #2 - Bodyweight Calesthenics
Matt Furey's "Royal Court" makes a great workout but can also be used as a warmup. Do 10 hindu squats, 10 hindu pushups, and hold a back bridge (or yoga table pose) for 5-7 breaths. Rest 30 seconds and repeat 2-3 more times.

Full Body Warmup #3 - Powerlifting Inspired Warmup
This warmup is great for strength trainers. Do 2-3 circuits of the following exercises: body weight squat, barbell row, reverse lunge, push ups. Each exercise is done for a single set of 8-12 reps. rest 30 seconds in between circuits if needed. Use either a broomstick or a bare barbell (45 lbs) for the rows.

Even mini-marathons need proper nutrition

An article in today's Indianapolis Star paper today suggests that half-marathoners need to pay as much attention to eating as they do to running. Much like the running training for the marathon, the article recommends starting a nutrition program at least three weeks out and slowly ramp of carbohydrate intake and practice hydrating during the run. You can read the entire article here: Complete Nutrition: Mini-marathon training should include figuring out the best fuel for the feet

It's been a while since my last post. A lot of reasons really -- travel, a spurt of work activity, yada yada. At the end of the day, the dog ate my homework and I didn't make the time to jot down more thoughts on functional fitness and training. My overall workout and training scheduled has slipped a bit too. At least with that there is an official phrase -- "tapering". These past few weeks my strength training volume is way down, and my cardio exercise is just for maintainence. It is good every now and again to give the body time to repair and renew, especially during hectic times. Getting so fixated on getting to the gym is confusing means and ends.

The goal is to have a healthy, powerful, and functionally fit body. Working out is the means. Training everyday to exhaustion is not progress. There is a fine line between intensity and stupidity -- usually seen by the regular visitation of Pukie during a workout.

Working Out, Training, and Seasonal Adaptation

Spring is trying to fight its way into the calendar on the east coast right now. Temperature swings on a given day can be 30 degrees and some days are cold and damp while others are warm, sunny, and filled with chirping birds. So what does this have to do with training? Usually, a reduction in performance and output. It doesn't matter whether you are a runner, track athlete, weekend hoops players, or power lifter. When the seasons change, people tend to have a string of crappy workouts.

When the seasons change it is typical to see two things in gyms and tracks all over: 1) an increase in colds and flu; 2) a decrease in workout ability. While it makes sense that with warmer weather and temperature changes people get more colds and this effects overall performance, that isn't the entire story. Our bodies get used to the temperature and weather conditions that we see day in and day out when training. When the weather starts to change, the seasonal shifts largely mean a change in temperature and humidity. Short term, our bodies don't respond well to the changes.

This is why on the first spring day it's common that your workout feels like crap and for some reason you aren't able to do quite as much as you did a few days ago. It's called "seasonal adaptation" -- a fancy term that means that like it or not, you've got to give yourself a few days to adjust to the new weather. One step back and then eventually two steps forward.