A Push Up And Sit Up Workout To Leave You Crying On The Field

Maybe you're stuck in a hotel without a workout room. Maybe your car broke down and you can't get to the gym. Maybe you're trying to increase your Push Up or Sit Up numbers and you just need a shock to your system to catapult you back into progress mode.

In any case, here's a great workout based on two of the most rudmimentary, 'no equipment required' exercises around - the Push Up and the Sit Up:

10 Feet Elevated Push Ups

10 Super Slow Sit Ups (5 seconds up, 5 seconds down)
10 Hindu Push Ups

10 Bicycle Crunches

10 Close-Grip Push Ups

10 Sit Ups - feet unanchored

10 Push Ups With Twist

10 Sit Ups - Feet Anchored

10 Regular Push Ups

10 Floor Crunches


Rookie Version - repeat sequence 1 time - 100 reps total
Vet Version - repeat sequence 3 times - 300 reps total
Extreme Version - repeat sequence 5 times - 500 reps total

Enjoy!

Another note - this workout is a great 'shocker' you can do every once in a while, but it will break you down (if you choose the right version for your fitness level). So please don't do it more than once a week - if not less often than that.

P.S. We've got some great stuff coming in the next two weeks, including an awesome new fitness product, an updated version of the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide - seriously, if you like anything you've read on this blog, you won't want to miss this. Even better, we're giving away some free copies in a few days - so make sure to sign up for our newsletter if you haven't yet to stay posted!!

March 2010 Workout Challenge

Here's our challenge workout for the month - are you up for it?
Three different versions of this one for different fitness levels:

'Please Don't Hurt Me' Version (easiest):

25 Kettlebell Swings, 12k kettlebell
20 Split Squats, No Added Weight
15 Sit Ups, Feet Anchored, Hands At Sides
10 Knee Push Ups

Repeat Circuit 4x For Time

'Turn It Up A Notch' Version (harder):

25 Kettlebell Swings, 16k kettlebell
20 Lunges, No Added Weight
15 Sit Ups, Feet Anchored, Hands Crossed Over Chest
10 Modified Burpees (push ups done from knees)

Repeat Circuit 4x For Time

'Bring The Pain' Version (hardest):

25 Kettlebell Swings, 24k Kettlebell
20 Lunges, Add 2 15# Dumbbells
15 Sit Ups, Feet Anchored, Hands Behind Head
10 Regular Burpees

Repeat Circuit 4x For Time

And videos of how to do each exercise:

The Kettlebell Swing:

The Burpee:



The Sit Up (with Ab Mat):



The Lunge/ Split Squat:



Enjoy! Also, don't forget to grab your free 7 day quick start workout guide while you're here ... just drop your name and email into the box in the upper right hand corner of the page.

Body Weight And Dumbbell Workout For Conditioning And Fat Loss

Need a solid, start-to-finish plan for your workout today? Like, right now? I know exactly how you feel. I've been there plenty of times myself: you're getting tired of your current routine, so you hop on the internet to find something new. But all you really find is bits and pieces - not a lot that really outlines exactly what you need to do, start to finish - something that you could literally print out and take to the gym with you.

With that in mind, I've put together a complete, done-for-you full-body body weight and dumbbell workout for 'ya. It's designed for an intermediate fitness level and is geared towards a fat loss or general conditioning goal. Why? 'Cause I'm a nice guy :) But also to give you an idea of the type of workouts you'll find in my book and DVD set, No Gym? No Excuse!.

If you work out at a gym during a busy time, this workout is perfect - the entire thing can be done without machines - just a set of dumbbells. If you work out at home, this workout is great as well.

We'll start with a short warm up, follow with a full-body dumbbell and body weight four exercise circuit, do a couple of exercises for your bis and tris, and finish with a short stretch. You're done in about 45 minutes, you'll hit every major muscle group in your body, and you'll get a little cardio workout while you're at it, too.

Body Weight And Dumbbell Workout

1. Warm up

*Recent research has shown that static stretching is best done after your workout; we're going to do some easy movements that activate your core muscles and move most of your major muscle groups through a full range of motion.

10 Body Weight Squats

Plank, :30 second hold

10 Push Ups

Repeat sequence twice without rest

This warm-up should be fairly easy; the goal is to break a sweat and prepare yourself for the work ahead. This is a lot more effective than five minutes on the treadmill or stationary bike.

2. Body weight and dumbbell circuit

10 Bent Over Dumbbell Rows

10 Explosive Push Ups

10 Dumbbell Squats

10 Hanging Leg Raises

Repeat sequence five times. Rest 30 seconds between exercises and 60 seconds between rounds.

Choose weights here that are challenging for you - take yourself maybe 2-3 reps short of failure with each exercise.

3. Arms

Gotta get those puppies pumped up a little before you're done ...

15 Barbell Curls

15 Lying Barbell Tricep Extensions

Repeat sequence three times. Rest 30 seconds between sets.

4. Static Stretch

Now's the time to stretch. You'll see the best increases in flexibility post-workout when you're warm, too.

Kneeling hip flexor stretch

Hamstring stretch

Glute/piriformis stretch

Chest/thoracic spine stretch

Hold each stretch for 30 seconds

Complete this workout from start to finish and you'll have worked all of your major muscle groups, gotten a strength, cardio, and flexibility workout, and can walk out of the gym feeling like you've actually accomplished something. Good luck!

P.S. If you enjoyed this workout, for starters, check out the 'greatest hits' section of this blog for additional body weight, kettlebell, and dumbbell workouts, diet tips, and more. If you're interested in a comprehensive twelve week workout and diet plan that uses kettlebells, dumbbells, and body weight training to help you lose fat, build muscle, and get in great shape, check out our book and DVD, No Gym? No Excuse! by clicking here!

5 Garage Gym Essentials

There are a large number of reasons that people decide to ditch the health club and put together some equipment at home for their personal workouts. One of the trickiest parts of this process is figuring out exactly what you're going to need with regards to training equipment. Here are five pieces that I think are essential to any garage gym set up:

1. Kettlebells

Kettlebells are a great tool to have for your garage gym. They give you the flexibility to hit all your major muscle groups in a very efficient manner - not to mention helping you get a resistance training and cardio workout all in one shot.

Check out this article over at kettlebellbasics.net for recommendations on what size to start with and what the best brands are.

2. Dynamax Med Balls

Another very versatile piece of equipment; can be used for anything from from sit ups to rotations to upper body throws.

3. Pull Up Bar

This could be as simple as one of the newly-popular 'door gyms' or it could be something sturdier and more permanent. Regardless, you'll need something to do your pulls on. Pulling is one of the main movements you really can't do with just your own body weight.

4. Olympic Weight Set

A 300 pound olympic weight set gives you the option of doing some heavier lifting, which is important to include in your programming at some point.

5. Jump Rope

Jumping rope is great cardio - plus it's compact and a heck of a lot cheaper than a treadmill :)

All of these pieces of equipment together can be purchased for less than $500 - so not only is having a garage gym convenient, it's affordable - $500 is less than a year of membership dues at most health clubs.

Now that you know how to build your garage gym, you need a workout program to pair with your new equipment - for the perfect program to help you use these tools to get a great workout in 30 minutes or less (and to try a week of free workouts), check out our book and dvd set at www.nogymnoexcuse.com!!

5 Diet Tips To Help You Get Ripped

Dieting is by far the hardest part of getting lean. Working out is fun and you're really only doing it a few hours a week ... dieting sucks and it's 24 hours a day, every day.

The good news is that there are a few things you can do to make things a little easier on yourself and to speed up your progress ... here are five tips that have helped me and many of my clients lose body fat in the past:

1. Don't Sweat The Small Stuff

A lot of people seem to obsess about the 'small' stuff: if they ate white rice instead of brown, or if they slipped up and had desert one night after dinner. Honestly, these small things do add up and make a difference - but individually, they're not going to kill your progress. This type of stuff happening every day is what ends up being a problem.

Look at where you're at on a daily or weekly basis - if you're in a calorie defecit, you should end up losing weight. This is where the importance of a food log comes in, too.

2. Portion Control

Your stomach is really only about the size of a fist; that's about how much food it takes to fill it. You should feel better when you're done eating, not sluggish or stuffed.

Getting your portions under control could be the most important factor in your weight loss efforts. If you simply took everything you currently ate and cut it in half, you'd start losing weight fast.

3. Prepare for success

If you have healthy food around the house, you're a lot less likely to hit up the In-n-Out burger on the way home after a long day of work. Here are a couple examples of foods that won't ruin your diet and are easy to prepare:

Pre-cooked grilled chicken breast
Bags of pre-washed greens
94% fat free microwave popcorn
Containers of pre-cooked brown rice

You get the idea. Set yourself up for success.

4. Have written goals

Write down your fitness goals. Tell your friends, co-workers, etc. about them. This is incredibly effective for any goal, fitness-related or not. Not only have you recorded what you're trying to accomplish, everyone knows about what you're doing, so you risk humiliation if you fail.

5. Once a week, eat what you want

Reward yourself for sticking to the plan all week long and eat what you want. This really helps keep you on track and gives you something to look forward to.

These simple tips really can make a difference in your diet efforts. The #1 thing is that you have to be committed - if you're mentally ready to change, you're well on your way.

Want some simple, fast, and healthy meal ideas? Make sure to sign up for our newsletter while you're here!

Kettlebell Cardio Fitness: Viking Warrior Conditioning

If you don't like working hard and you're satisfied with sub-par results from your workouts, then skip this article.

If you're looking for a 'cardio' routine that actually works for shedding body fat and building the lung capacity of a porpoise, the Viking Warrior Conditioning program by Kenneth Jay, Master RKC could be right up your alley.

This program is no joke. Your heart rate will probably get higher than it ever has in your entire life. It's a true test of mental and physical fortitude. But if you can work your way up to the full 80 sets of kb snatches in 40 minutes, your level of conditioning - and physique - will be truly world-class.

I'll keep this post short and not give too much away ... if you want to know more about the program, check out this page on DragonDoor.com:

Click Here for Viking Warrior Conditioning

Keep training hard!

HIIT For Fat Loss: The Tabata Protocol

The Tabata Protocol is one of the most brutal - and most effective - High Intensity Interval Training methods around. I'm going to explain exactly what the Tabata Protocol is, why it works so well, and how you can incorporate it into your existing workout routine for fat loss and improved conditioning.

The protocol was originally developed by a coach of the Japanese speed skating team. Based on positive reports this coach was getting with his methods, Izumi Tabata, a Japanese scientest, and his research group took the protocol and attempted to quantify its effects in a clinical setting.

Tabata's original study split its subjects into two groups. The subjects were put on a six week routine, employing either a moderate intensity cardio program (60 minutes, five times per week), or a very high intensity, four-minute long program – 20 seconds of all-out effort followed by 10 seconds of rest, done eight times. The high intensity workout was also performed five times per week.

The findings of the study, in a nutshell, were as follows: High Intensity Interval Training - and particularly the Tabata Protocol - appears to give us the best of both worlds - aerobic and anerobic fitness. The subjects doing the short, intense workout improved in both of these measures. The traditional, 'long-slow-distance' workout the control group did, as expected, improved the subjects aerobic fitness, but it didn't improve anaerobic fitness, power output, or anything else like the Tabata group experienced. The bottom line is that the Tabata protocol is a great tool to help you burn fat and get in great shape in a fast and very time-efficient way.

So now you know exactly what it is, let's talk about how Tabatas can be incorporated into your training. You could simply pick a cardio activity - such as cycling, as was done in the original study - and do a five minute warm-up, four minutes of the Tabata protocol, and a five minute cool-down. Alternately, you could use body weight movements like squats, push ups, or sit ups and perform eight intervals of twenty seconds of maximum repetitions with ten seconds of rest in between. The Tabata Protocol can even be done with actual external resistance - Kettlebell Swings and Thrusters are two movements that work great.

The Tabata protocol is one of the hardest and most effective interval protocols around. It works great for both fat loss and improved conditioning. There are a variety of ways you can incorporate the Tabata method into your existing workout routine. For a fast, effective, and brutally hard high-intensity conditioning workout, Tabatas can't be beat.

P.S. The Tabata Protocol is just one of many different high-intensity techniques that are used in the No Gym? No Excuse! workout system. To try a week's worth of free workouts from N0 Gym? No Excuse! and sign up for our free newsletter, drop your name and email into the box in the upper right hand corner of the page!