Here’s my vid from “The Arnold” as it’s referred to. Each year I try and focus on something a little different so people can get the real flavor of the show and its diversity of events.
I think this year it has a good selection people may not expect to see at The Arnold, plus my usual ‘favorite’ topics to video… 
If you’re familiar with the floor press, this is a “bench” version of that, basically. If you’re not familiar with the floor press, it still is, but I’m going to tell you what the means 
The floor press is a bench press done laying on the floor. The reason it’s useful is that at the bottom, your upper arms rest on the floor, which allows you to take tension off the pecs so you’re starting with zero elastic tension at the bottom of every rep. This helps work the muscles harder because of that missing assistance.
Shawn Phillips and I had a candid conversation about a bunch of topics people should enjoy. Shawn has been in the industry as long as I have, and we talk about various current topics, as well as tell some funny stories about what was the “Golden Age” of the supplement industry, when Muscle Media (which was published by Shawn’s Brother Bill Phillips) was the best magazine out there. Some of the topics we cover in this Podcast:
This is an excellent martial arts, MMA or wrestling exercise…especially useful for those who have exert explosive rotational power when lying on the ground. You’ll be using the gluteus medius and minimus muscles (the abductors of the hips), to roll from side to side while holding a dumbell at your chest.
And while this would seem to primarily hit the core hard, you will get a good hip workout out of it as well.
As we get older, get busy with families and work, go to one too many office parties, happy hours, and cupcake shops, we often don’t notice the slow creeping on of pounds. Or maybe we do. Or maybe you wake up one day and can’t get the jeans to fit or the shirt over your bellybutton. Short of buying an entire wardrobe, you’re faced with a dilemma.
Understandably, the last thing most of us want to do is go on a diet or reduce calories. The very thought of doing so sends some of us into a tailspin, feasting “last supper” style, or running to the donut store before we begin a weight loss diet “tomorrow.” The good news is that you can make gradual, small changes and lose weight effortlessly. The same way you allowed small changes in your diet that added the pounds on gradually (the extra wine at happy hour, the chocolate kisses at the front desk, the cupcake at the birthday party, the desert you could have split, the caramel machiatto, etc), is the same way you can effortlessly lose weight by making small changes.
It’s not often I come across a new piece of training equipment that makes me say “I wanna try that!.” Most of what I see for “new” training equipment is either a rehashed concept, or more a novelty.
The Slayer Barbell is a new design that has merit, so I decided to get my hands on one and try it. I also left it at my gym for other members to use, and it’s quickly become one of the most popular training tools in the gym. Below is a vid I made with a few friends using the Slayer.
Although the “bread and butter” of this bar is arm training, one can do a surprising number of effective exercises with it in a very small footprint as well as a few specialty exercises, such as bridges. See an example of whole body training I did with fitness model Kelly HERE.
As with any training tool, it’s a tool in the tool box. Not going to change your life and make you “a mass monster in 20 days and give you a body of a God” or any such nonsense, but I think it makes a great addition to a home gym or commercial set up. There’s more that can be done with this bar then my simple vids shows.
The manufacturer is currently giving away a copy of my book The Sports Supplement Bible FREE with any purchase of a Slayer Bar for the month of February, so if you’ve been thinking of trying one, you’ll have my book to read! Hit HERE if interested
PS, they liked my video so much they asked permission to use it on their site, so you’ll see the above vid their too
Like many people, I have my fair share of aches & pains, tight muscles, and hard earned small injuries and such. Like many, I have been using a foam roller for soft tissue work or SMFR (Self-Myofascial Release) work to improve sore muscles, tight muscles, and general recoup. I generally do my foam rolling in the morning for 15-20 minutes while the oatmeal cooks and coffee brews. It gets me ready for a day at the computer also. I also use it at the gym before workouts, a few times per week, and I find doing so reduces DOMS. Foam rolling is often referred to as “the poor mans massage therapist.” In terms of time and $$$ spent, it’s a no brainer in terms of benefits you receive. If you’re not using a foam roller regularly, you should be, like starting yesterday!
Rumble Roller comes in two sizes and firmness
As time goes on, one notices the standard foam roller not as effective, and or, they start to break down, and a replacement needed. Some seem to last longer than others. Enter the Rumble Roller, which takes foam rolling to another level and seems to last far longer than the standard rollers. I was going to make one of my usual videos talking about the benefits of foam rollers, and why the Rumble Roller superior, but coach Charles Staley – who has some great articles here on the BrinkZone – did such a good job of it, I decided to use his vid on the topic. If interested in more information, I purchased both the standard length and shorter smaller (12″x 5″) travel length HERE
Personally, I prefer the standard (blue) firmness Rumble Roller. Highly recommended if you already use foam rollers, not recommended for those new to foam rolling for soft tissue/SMFR work as the Rumble Roller is very aggressive. Watch coach Staley’s excellent vid on the benefits of foam rolling, and why he likes the Rumble Roller over standard rollers in particular.
I’m often asked what’s a good exercise for the gluteus and hamstrings. Bridges are one of the most underrated and underutilized exercises for working those muscles. The bridge is an excellent exercise to isolate and strengthen the gluteus, hamstrings, core stability muscles, hip/lower back as well as improve spinal stabilization. Most people do this exercise without added resistance, but that’s a mistake (see “tip” below vid). Done with added resistance, there’s improved responses, as all muscles require added resistance (vs volume) to adapt and get stronger. And NO, they are not just for women!!!
Bridges are a highly functional exercise that can lead to both functional improvements as well as visual. For example, one practitioner of Brazilian jiu jitsu I know said “This is a key exercise for anyone who competes in jiu jitsu tournaments. Strong bridge makes all the difference in escaping. I work bridges hard.”
Bridges are an exercise that have both expected and unexpected benefits both functionally (for various sports) and visually, for bodybuilders, figure/fitness, or the average person looking shape up and strengthen the area. It’s also used for both rehab and prehab. Personally, I tend to incorporate it into lower body days. A typical workout might look like: front squats, RDLs, Bridges, and planks, or a workout I did the other day geared more toward conditioning/GPP/conditioning was a complex of:
Sand bag step ups
Slayer Barbell Bridges
High/low Prowler sprints
Did three circuits of the above then some planks and side planks. My butt was sore for days!
Tip: most people do bridges with body weight only as adding additional resistance comfortably is not always easy. The Slayer Barbell allows for as much added resistance as you could want in perfect comfort, which is one of many exercises this bar allows. If not using a Slayer, try putting a foam pad around an Olympic bar (so the bar does not dig into your hips), or try a plate across your lap, or a heavy medicine ball. None of those options are as comfortable and smooth as using the Slayer Barbell, but experiment with those options and see what works for you. As with any body weight only exercise, your own weight will only get you so far and added resistance will be needed for continued increases in strength, etc.
Note: if you want more information on Sandbags, Slayer Barbell, or Prowler sleds, go HERE and or use the search function (upper right hand corner of this site) to see more vids, articles, etc on them. They are “must have” training tools in my book.
The mere word cholesterol gives many goose bumps. We have been indoctrinated since the well-known Framingham Studies that the higher the blood cholesterol level, the higher the risk of heart disease 1-3. However, much has been discovered in medical research since then. Today there is compelling evidence showing that strict reliance on the traditional cholesterol test that is routinely run in the clinic can falsely tell you and your doctor that you’re fine, even if you aren’t. Here you will find out what to look for…
So you survived Thanksgiving, and are praying that the added cost of pumpkin pie + halloween candy + office parties + Christmas parties + New Year’s doesn’t totally derail your fitness or weight loss goals. Perhaps up until you turned comfort food corner, you’ve been doing real well.
In reality, if you intend to take off the weight and keep it off, Holiday season or not, you’ve got to be continually vigilant about the choices you make year round. And sometimes it seems that some of us have a way easier time than others being mindful about food or fitness choices on a regular basis, while others more easily succumb to temptation when faced with it (this tends to be worse during the Holidays when sweets and comfort foods are EVERYWHERE).
Train your brain like you train your biceps.
It’s not like these people are super-disciplined humans with no sense of smell for homemade chocolate chip cookies, but the one thing they probably have in common is willpower- the power to use discipline and self-awareness to make choices that steer them towards achieving their bigger goal, no matter what the occasion.
The good news is you can exercise your “willpower muscle” much like you exercise your muscles when you lift weights. The more you “train” your brain to either resist a temptation or make a positive choice, the easier and more natural the process becomes. If you stop and think about it, how many times have you been faced with a temptation and you hear two voices in your head battling it out?
And how many times have you “spent” your mental energy all day at work, resisting the urge to tell a complaining customer or boss to shove it, then come home and bury your sorrows in a cheesecake or a bottle of wine (or both!)? Perhaps you’ve exhausted your willpower muscle, and something has gone on in your head that either steers you to make the best choice for your diet/fitness goals or away from it.
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