Doing CrossFit at Home or in a Local Gym

ByJames W Goulden

CrossFit is getting really big at the moment all around the world, and the reason for that is that this program actually works. People have literally changed their lives just from making the decision to go CrossFit at the local CrossFit gym, otherwise known as a "box".

However, not everyone has the luxury to have a CrossFit location in the area, so the only choice is to go do it yourself, either at home or in the local gym.

Doing CrossFit at your local gym might be a bit tricky. The management probably won't allow you do some the CrossFit exercises, due to legal reasons, and It's unlikely that there is going to be a qualified CrossFit level 1 coach there to help you out.

At home your training will only be limited by the amount of equipment you can afford, but you can easily do some great CrossFit workouts, or "wods" as they are know, by simply owning an old barbell, a few weight plates and a pull up bar. You can usually pick up a used set of weights and bars on eBay for around $200.

Remember that CrossFit is a high impact exercise program so you really need to make sure that you are doing it safe!

CrossFit can be dangerous, so if you are going to start doing it you might want to consider hiring a good personal trainer in your gym, or looking for some online CrossFit coaching. This can be a great way to make sure that you are doing the exercises, like the deadlift, olympic lifts, squats etc correctly and most importantly safely.

You could also have a program specifically created for you, if you are lacking strength and skill in a particular area, or you have some kind of injury.

Even if you are are not new to the CrossFit regime, you could still benefit from a qualifed and experienced CrossFit level 1 coach.

Online CrossFit coaching can be a lot more cost effective than hiring a random Personal Trainer in your gym too.

These days a lot of these online fitness coaches are using video uploads from their clients to "remotely train" their clients.

Just make sure your online coach uses something like this. Also make sure your coach has some credibility, and that he/she knows what they are doing and talking about. Lots of trainers have a level 1 certificate these days.

My name is James Goulden. I own my very own CrossFit box with over 200 members, and I also have a regular stream of online CrossFit coaching clients from all over the world. Check out my website http://www.icelandfit.com/

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The Day of Rest - Get Fit By Doing Nothing

When you are training a lot, it is really easy to get obsessed with exercise and to try to "do something" every day.

After a few small niggles that turned into more serious injuries because I ignored them and kept training, I've come to realise the very real value of doing nothing sometimes.

I woke up this morning sore. After a half marathon, a 5K effort and some hill climbs in the last few days it's not surprising really. Lying in bed my quads felt like they'd been kicked. My calves are tight and I just generally feel a little run down. So I went back to sleep.

The science is clear. We get fitter, faster when we take some down time every now and then. Abused muscle fibres re-knit and the restorative power of sleep do wonders for mind and body. As a busy person, I do the majority of my training at "stupid o'clock" in the morning. Coupled with a busy job, a young family, and some late night TV coverage of cycling, it means that I am certainly not getting 8 hours sleep at night. That makes recovery days even more important.

Whilst it can sometimes feel that you are going to fall behind your training plan, or that you are missing out on an opportunity to put in some miles, you're actually just giving your body the preparation it needs to smash your next workout and go to the next level.

When I first started training regularly for Triathlon, I was absolutely determined to swim, ride or run (or a combination of the above) every day of the week. I started to see massive improvements in my speed, endurance and technique. My motto was "more volume

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If You Are Currently Doing Sit-Ups To Get That Six Pack - Stop

Are you trying different workouts to improve your stomach muscles? You seek to get the infamous 6 pack abs look. You know your abs are "in there" because you can feel them but they tend to be shy muscles and always want to stay covered up.

Many people begin working their abs using the basic sit-up. This routine is time honored and most of us learned this in elementary school gym class. I will, in a minute, talk about some types of sit ups that can be performed. When the ab exercises did not give you the waistline you desired, you might have looked for other things to incorporate into your schedule. To find out how to gain muscles fast and reach the highest gain, is the goal. Some of the ways that you may have even tried are to incorporate crunches or planks. Below is information examining each exercise.

Let's talk then about those exercises that will help you reach your goal of tight abs and give you the answers on how to gain muscles quickly.

Sit-Ups

I have said before that many have done this workout to slim their waistline. So as we have alluded to there are other ab workouts out there but before we discuss those let's do a bit of a summary of the common sit-up. As the name implies, the starting position for this exercise is in a sitting position, usually with your knees bent up towards your chest.

Arm position can vary here. Some people prefer their arms crossed behind their heads while others prefer to have them crossed over their bellies. Whichever you prefer it doesn't matter. Now that you are in position, start to lower your upper body down towards the mat. Go slowly and keep your back straight all the while using only your ab muscles. Now that you have your back on the ground, reverse what you just did and slowly raise your upper body back up towards your knees. Repeat this sequence for as many repetitions as you possibly can.

One common variation that many people use is to keep their legs extended straight out instead of having them bent. Another benefit of the straight leg variation is that it makes the sit-up a bit easier to perform. You now have more weight in front of the body so that when you are lifting your back, your legs will stay on the ground. Are you one of those frustrated sit-up performers that have been doing sit-ups for years but have never really seen the tight abs that you thought you should have? Have you ever thought about why that is? It's actually a pretty simple explanation. The process of performing a sit-up uses the muscle known as the Psoas muscle.

So to clear up one thing first, the psoas muscle is not one of the six pack ab muscles that most people would be thinking about. This particular muscle runs from the top of your upper front leg and travels upwards past your hip and then on to attach to your vertebrae. The psoas muscle and few others all combine to form the commonly known muscles of the hip flexors. If you can think back to your sit-up days, how often did you actually feel what is known as the "burn" in your abs after performing your sit-ups. I will hazard a guess here and say that it wasn't all that often. If not sit-ups, what else?

Crunches

All you need to do is modify how you do your sit-up and you are on to crunches. So the main difference between a crunch and a sit-up is in the amount of movement with your upper body. With the crunch, you want to try and curl your upper torso up towards your knees while keeping your lower back on the floor. So by keeping your lower back on the ground, you now isolate your ab muscles. Don't be surprised if you cannot raise all the way to your knees. If your back is kept on the floor, as you raise upwards you will isolate and use only your ab muscles. Bend up as much as you can and then slowly come back down. So eliminate the sit-ups, add in the crunches and feel your abs burn.

A New Way Of Thinking

There are some experts in the industry that still feel that both sit-ups and crunches are hard on the body. The reasons being are that they feel these lead to poor posture and potential lower back injuries. The argument unfolds in the way that these exercises are performed, where you are basically bending your spine as you come up. All arguments aside, what else could you do if you still wanted to exercise your abs? One word; planks.

Planks

With planks you get a total body workout by exercising not only your ab muscles but also working your core as well. These are also great strength building exercises for push-ups. To start a plank, lie down on your stomach with your hands on the floor and your elbows bent (similar to a push-up position). Press your body upwards like a push-up, however stay resting on your elbows and forearms. While in this upward position, maintain a straight back posture. You should try and hold yourself in this position for at least 10 seconds but the longer you stay here, the more benefit you'll receive. Slowly let yourself down, breathe and then repeat this same sequence as many times as you can. You will be guaranteed to feel your abs burning after these ones.

So whether you choose sit-ups, crunches or planks, you have a lot of options for strengthening your abdominal region and the great thing about these exercises is that you can do them anywhere. There are still a lot of people that prefer sit-ups and that's alright if you are getting the results that you want. There are other more effective options though as detailed above that will allow you to get the results you seek quicker. So the "How" in how to gain muscles fast and get better defined abs comes from all the exercises detailed above. Crunches and planks though will get you to your goals much faster than just using sit-ups. Try these new exercises and monitor how your body reacts to them. That way you will find the exercise that is best suited to you and your body. So the question comes up; how do you gain muscles? Try building up your core and the rest will follow.

The author of this article is Kevin and he believes in good old fashioned healthy living, eating well and training hard. He believes fitness plays a vital role in each of our lives.

To learn more about how to gain muscles fast you can check out his website here:

http://www.howtogainmusclesinfo.com

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Crunch the Habit of Doing Crunch After Crunch

ByAaron Gee

Your other exercises are typically in the range of 8-15 reps. So what in the world makes you think that doing crunch after crunch, after crunch, after crunch will have any effect?

If something at the gym takes you hundreds of reps in order to feel even a minuscule burn, you're doing it wrong.

I don't know how crunches became so popular. I think people like them because they're easy to do, and because the stomach area is the number one problem area for most people. But you're not going to get six-pack abs from doing thousands of crunches. Crunches do little to strengthen or tighten your core. Plus, they really only hit the top half of your abs, leaving your lower abs neglected. You're wasting your time and effort.

There are much better ab exercises. Here are three of our favorites:

Roman chair

Most gyms have this piece of equipment. It's the chair with armrests but no seat to sit on. To complete one rep, you start with your legs straight below you and pull your knees up to your chest with your abs. For a more advanced exercise, keep your legs straight and extend them straight out in front of you. Try to finish with your legs slightly past parallel with the ground, and try to hold your legs in the final position if you can for an additional burn.

The key to this exercise is to not swing your legs. Momentum is the ultimate results killer. Try to go slower if you feel the tendency to swing your body. Bring your legs down slowly when returning to the starting position after each rep and focus on using the lower part of your abs to get them past horizontal.

Try to do sets of 15-20 with your legs fully extended, if possible.

Stability ball sit-ups

These are excellent for your abs and the only other exercise I do for my abs besides the Roman chair. Most gyms have these balls in various sizes. Grab one of the larger ones and sit on it such that the arch of your lower back rests along the curvature of the ball. Extend downwards as far as you can comfortably go for the starting position, and contract your abs and obliques to thrust your chest as high as possible. Go up slowly upwards and slowly back down. Remember, this is a sit-up, not a crunch.

By using the stability ball, you really have to focus on your core to keep yourself balanced during each sit-up. Try to also do sets of 15-20 reps of these.

Sprinting

Sprinting is easily my favorite ab exercise. The process of driving your knees explosively forward as you sprint will work your abs and obliques more intensely than any other exercise. I can't remember the last time I did a sprint workout and wasn't sore all around my midsection.

Not to mention, a regular sprinting regimen like the one used in EpicFit20's Premium Membership will help shed fat from the stomach and oblique area, making the ab muscles look even better.

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Proper Running Technique: What You're Doing Wrong, and How to Correct It

ByAaron Gee

Let's try a little science experiment. First, I want you to walk barefoot from one end of the room you're in to the other while walking on your heels. Next, I want you to walk back to where you began, but on the balls of your feet (the base of your foot right behind your toes). Now, repeat both walks, but add a little hop in your step each way.

Notice any differences? If you do this right, you'll notice how much more uncomfortable and painful each step was while landing on your heels. Think about it: what exactly is there to absorb the impact while landing on your heels?

It's basically up to the bones running from your ankle to your knee to absorb the impact of each step. This is how shin splints and knee problems happen: bones are not designed to take impact. Just imagine repeating each painful step over the course of several miles.

So what makes landing on the balls of your feet any different? Your calf muscle. Think of the calf muscle as nature's shock absorber.

The human body evolved (or was created, but we're not here to have that discussion) to run on the balls of the foot. This is how our barefoot ancestors had been doing it since the dawn of time. Somewhere in between then and now, the design of the modern running shoe has ruined proper running technique by adding extra cushioning to the heel of the foot.

The concept of adding extra cushioning is not completely dumbfounded: think of how you walk. Each step begins on the heels and ends on the toes, as it should be. But transferring this technology to modern running shoes has been extremely counterproductive, since using a walking shoe for running is like wearing briefs as a t-shirt. It was taught people to land on their heels while running, and has been the single greatest cause of running injuries.

Have you ever seen the spikes sprinters wear while running track? The metal spikes reside entirely on the front half of the shoe, and there is absolutely no cushion on the heel of the shoe. This is what you should imagine you're wearing while running.

I'm not talking about running on your tippie-toes. Rather, as you run, you should try to have your foot land just slightly past flat, with all of the pressure being focused on the balls of your feet.

Shin splints? Gone.

Knee tendonitis? Adios.

This can be uncomfortable at first, only because your Achilles tendon is not used to working this hard. The muscle running from the large part of your calf muscle to your heel will be sore for a day or two after a good jog. But, over time, this muscle will strengthen and adapt to your new running style.

But don't rush it. If your calves are sore, take a few days off from running, and try again once the muscle has fully recovered. Your knees and shins will thank you.

Check out EpicFit20.com for all of your free online personal fitness training needs, or visit our Free Blog for more free fitness and health articles, updated daily!

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