Any calisthenics program can work, but the real question is which will work best for you? One of the most important factors is how much programming assistance you need. Programming assistance is essentially the amount of structure you have within a given calisthenics program. Having more structure means there’s less guesswork on your end since the program lays out most …
Break Free of Diet & Exercise Dogma for Good
Fitness dogma that dictates how you should eat and exercise is ever prevalent within our fitness culture. Most of the time these dogmas start out as simple ideas but grow into a mini-religion by the time they hit the masses. The issue I take with them is they both limit your freedom of lifestyle and results. It’s like locking both your …
Diet vs Exercise for Long Term Fat Loss
Many claim diet is more important for fat loss, and it may be in some situations, however, fat loss through diet is a temporary scenario. Regardless of what diet you follow your body will find a way to return to calorie balance one way or another. This is why physical activity might be a stronger, more potent variable towards your …
Programing Supplemental Calisthenics Moves
Just like traditional weight lifting methods, calisthenics includes both basic compound movements as well as single joints moves like curls, shoulder raises and grip work. Even though you may not need these moves, they can shore up a few weak points and round out your physique. The trick is knowing how to fit them into your program so they don’t …
Programing Calisthenics for Fat Loss, Muscle Building & More
Calisthenics is a fantastic training method, but it can fall flat if you don’t know how to program your routine to accomplish what you want. The squat is a good example. You can use it to pursue any goal from building muscle to explosive training and even fat loss. It’s just one move but it can used to accomplish many …
Programing Calisthenics for Endurance
Training for endurance isn’t rocket science, but there are a few programing details you need to get right. Exercises like squats, jumping, lunges, push ups and rows are staples to an endurance program as are burpees, running, and hill sprints. The most important thing is to understand just what kind of endurance you’re training for. Training for a half marathon is …
Programing Calisthenics for Strength
Calisthenics is a fantastic vehicle for building strength. After all, have you ever met anyone who can do a ton of handstand push ups or single arm pull ups who wasn’t strong? But don’t expect to build that kind of strength doing endless push ups and crunches. You gotta know how to program your workouts so they challenge your strength. …
The Perfect Diet and Exercise Program Myth
“And they lived happily every after……” It’s the ending of every classic fairy tale. Once the main characters have found each other, vanquished their foes and made everything perfect, they go off to a life of perfection. It’s an idea that saturates our modern day culture. If you can find the perfect mate, drive the perfect car and work …
The Art and Science of Exercise Progression
Progression is the essence of success. It’s the very thing that causes your fitness to grow and mature. Without it you’re stuck. It doesn’t matter how hard you work or what your program looks like. If you don’t have progression, you don’t have……well…..progress. You just end up working your tail off to stay where you are. In this week’s …
What We Can Honestly Expect From Diet and Exercise Programs
Yes, great changes are possible! Here’s the fine print: Never before has the hype around diet and exercise programs been so…..well……hyped up. Everything out there is the latest and greatest with promises that seem too good to be true. To a degree, these promises do seem possible. After all, we do live in a time where new information about the …
The Body Builder vs. Athlete Dichotomy
The drive to both train for performance as well as appearance is a big obstacle on the journey towards Fitness Independence. Sometimes the two just short circuit the results you really want. Other times it just causes more confusion over how to get what you want. This is one of the best podcasts I’ve done. It will clear up a …
You Certainly Can “Make Up” Your Own Workout or Diet
Lots of times people balk at me when I say they should be their own expert. They say that making up their own program sounds stupid and they would rather trust the experts who are not making stuff up. In this week’s podcast I discuss why making up your own methods can in fact be even more effective …