Moving On---

After returning from my trip, it became clear that I needed a change-up.  So, I will be redesigning my blog and the concept for my blog.  It will still be fitness-oriented but will not contain my week-to-week workouts necessarily but will have more of my thoughts regarding workouts, techniques, etc.  or not!  So, until then (about 2-4 weeks) there will be no entries.  Talk with you soon.

Reading Todd Durkins Book

I am currently reading not only Men's Health Power Training but Todd Durkins Impact Plan.  All have very sound programs but I don't like following them to the "t" so I will incorporate the two programs somewhat taking what I like about each.  I will be previewing this in the next couple of posts but I will be traveling next week and using it (as I mentioned in a previous post) as an unloading phase.  When I return, I will probably use some of the periodization from the Power Training book and add the joint mobility and stretching aspects of the Todd Durkin book.  The Ki Hara stretching is still on my list of to-dos but I haven't brought it into my workouts as fully as I would like--this is what happens when you have many good ideas--fitting them all in at the right time. 

Ki Hara Resistance Stretching

I was reading some literature and they referenced Ki Hara Resistance Stretching (Dara Torres is an advocate) and thought I would give some of the stretches a try.  Although there is a DVD you can buy, I watched some of the videos on YouTube and was able to put together a short routine.  Because this is new, I decided to incorporate one or two stretches to my normal stretching and then as I got accustomed to them at some others.  What I found difficult was how they managed to hold their legs (I started with hamstrings) in such a way to provide both resistance and stretching.  I have decided to work on that aspect until I feel confident I am doing it correctly.  I find it helpful to not only view a number of YouTube videos around certain techniques but to also check out some of the professional literature on each of them.  Regardless, you still have to try all the moves and make adjustments as necessary for your comfort level.

My 3rd Workout is a Circuit

My third workout in this series is a circuit adapted from Men's Health that is 30 seconds of work/15 seconds of rest.  This is actually the hardest workout because I am doing similar moves as in the complexes and using the higher weights and each exercise will yield a different number of repetitions because of the timeframe:

• DB Straight Leg Dead Lift
• DB Plank Row
• DB Front Squat
• DB Push Press
• DB High Pull
• Cross Body Mountain Climber
• Split Squat (L/R)
• DB T-Pushup
• Reverse Lunge and Twist (L/R)
• DB Bent Row

I just wing the Tabata warm-up based on the exercises I will be doing in the circuit.  I will do this group of exercises for the next few weeks, ending on April 29th.  I will then take a week off for unloading as I am traveling to Ohio and won't have gym facilities and will be doing a bodyweight/tabata cardio strength training workout.  When I return from Ohio, I will start doing some of Robert Dos Remedios Power Training which includes some periodization.

Cardio Weight Training Complex - Barbells

As noted previously, I developed my own complexes for this next set of workouts.  The barbell complex consists of the following:

• Bent Row
• Romanian Dead Lift
• Snatch
• Push Press
• Forward Lunge
• Good Morning
• Squat

I can lift more weight with the barbells, so once I get to the 12 rep complex I will flip the barbell and dumbbell exercises.  The Tabata warm-up was:

• Hop (forward and back)
• Single Leg Dead Lift (L/R)
• Mt. Climber
• Static Squat (in/out)
• Bulgarian Split Squat (L/R)
• Lateral Ski Jump

Some of my moves have been taken from Rachel Cosgrove's book The Female Body Breakthrough.  I just purchased Todd Durkin's book as well as another of Coach Dos's books to see if I can bring other items to my workout.  I looked at other books at Borders but didn't find anything else of interest (ordered them on Amazon).