Here’s another one! A ridiculously awesome, yet brief, guide. I don’t claim the whole “ridiculously awesome” thing too often, unless the article is deserving. Last time I did this was with this article: 

• A Ridiculously Awesome, Yet Brief, Guide to Double Unders

So here is another attempt! *Clears throat* Let us begin.

What is this so called “mobility” you speak of?

Mobility is a pretty hot topic these days, with functional movement becoming all the more popular, and relevant, it’s only natural.

If you are told to do a full squat, hip crease below the knee (learn more here), and you cannot do it…do you think you were just born that way??

Chances are you weren’t born that way, you can fix yourself and the prescribed medication would be mobility exercises.

The first time I heard the term mobility thrown around in a fitness setting, I thought we were talking about training the elderly. Which is a large client base for functional movement programs, but hey, not only oldies need mobility work…we all do!!

Do I need to work on mobility?  

That’s a good question. I think most humans out there can benefit from mobility exercises, but let’s find out if YOU, specifically, need mobility work.

Test time!!

If you have a little bit of time feel free to give yourself the “Functional Movement Screen” test [check it out here]. It is a basic test that will have you do a few simple movements, score them and see where your current mobility stands.

So…how mobile are you? 

Like I said, it is a very basic test, but the information gained is very valuable because you will find where you need the most work. There are a lot of studies and information on this test if you are the nerdy fitness type (like me) and want to read more.

• Google Scholarly Articles
• Using the Functional Movement Screen™ to evaluate the effectiveness of training
• The Functional Movement Screen: a reliability study
• Functional movement test scores improve following a standardized off-season intervention program in professional football players

More than likely you have found, or already know, that you need to work on mobility…so where do you start??

Let’s start with your mobility toolbox, below.

Your Mobility ToolBox (Actual Tools and Resources)

I think it is time I introduce you to Dr. Kelly Starrett, this man’s name is now synonymous with the word mobility. KSTAR, as he is known, runs a formerly free website, he charges for some stuff now, for working on your mobility with daily videos and information. Don’t worry most of the original YouTube video are still free. His website is MobilityWOD.com, and that is most of the info I will be suggesting you put in your “mobility toolbox”. Oh, and just to be honest with you guys, if you purchase any of these goods using the links below – I get a tiny profit (to keep the lights on here at End of Three Fitness). BUT I recommend these things regardless of profit, so if you want to make sure I don’t get the profit, just don’t use my links

Mobility Toolbox Item #1 – A Playlist 

I wrote a brief, but not ridiculously awesome, post on mobility last year, in which I put the first 200 mobility WODs (workout of the day) in a YouTube playlist.

Go ahead and subscribe to that playlist here and start your daily mobility efforts.

Mobility Toolbox Item #2 – A Book 

I have recently purchased this book, and while I have not gotten all the way through it, I highly recommend what I have read. It’s great for reference too. Don’t be thrown off by the title, Kelly is a pretty interesting dude who likes to use words like “goats”, “gnarly” and things of that nature. He actually explains the whole supple leopard thing in the book, pretty cool.

“Becoming A Supple Leopard”

Written by KSTAR, this book is must have!

 You can check it out at Amazon too.

Mobility Toolbox Item #3 – The Actual Tools 

Now, here are the items you can actually put in a toolbox. These items can inflict some pretty agonizing pain, that is good for you . This is your basic starter pack, but it might as well be the advanced version too, because you really don’t need much more than these items to work on your mobility in a major way.

• Mobility Bands

• Foam Rollers (or Rumble Roller)

• Lacrosse balls

If you scroll through that playlist above you will see how these items can be used pretty regularly. I own the mobility pack from Rogue Fitness and I pretty much use the rumble roller daily, bands pretty regularly and lacrosse balls every so often.

 ###

Well that should be enough to get you started! I have to cut this thing off before I can no longer claim the “yet brief” title to this article. But work on your mobility, it’s important! If you have any questions ask em’ in the comments or shoot me an email.

-Jerred

Are you just doing what everyone else does? If you are just doing what everyone else does, and everyone else hates fitness, why do it? Why not be uniquely fit?

We all know, at Eo3, fitness is a lifestyle, a journey a pursuit. If you can ingrain fitness into ever fiber of your being, working out would be about as optional as eating.

But you’re busy…

Welcome to the club, take two of these and call me in the morning:

• “Making Fitness & Health A Golf Ball”
• “Gandhi, Bruce Lee and The Priority of Fitness”

I believe fitness should be a part of your life and never compromised…BUT…I also think you need to live life to the fullest, take breaks, have fun and enjoy the moment. Maybe knock a few things off your bucket list.

So how do we find that balance? How do we make fitness our own? How do we make it something we want to do? How can we be unique?

Easy, find your unique fitness approach.

We all have the desire to be unique in some way, shape or form. That is why everyone has their claim to fame, however obscure it may be, or the way they “do things” that makes them different, or unique. One of the slogans we throw around at End of Three Fitness is “Fitness Nonconformity” because we do things a little bit differently than most. But I am not different just for the sake of being different…

There is a difference in being an intelligent nonconformist and a rebel without a cause, and it is a fine line, but I digress…

Back to being unique. Chances are you have your uniqueness, there is just something about you that makes you, you. To steal a quote from You, me and Dupree, it is your “ness”, for example, for me, it would be my Jerred-ness. You have this in a lot of aspects in your life, but I bet you are missing your “ness” in fitness.

As stated at the beginning…If you are just doing what everyone else does, and everyone else hates fitness, why do it? Why not be uniquely fit?

Running in the Opposite Direction of The Masses

Someone I have been very impressed with, in this regard, is Charlotte Andersen who runs the website The Great Fitness Experiment, and she wrote a book about her experience. Basically, she tried a new style of fitness every month for a year. Pretty unconventional, and awesome, if you ask me.   

How’s that for finding a unique fitness approach?

I think you may see what I am getting at here. Try something new, something that challenges the norm, something that will keep you interested and engaged. Something that is unique.

You don’t have to do what Charlotte did, but here are some other “fitness experiments” to give take a look at to help you find your unique fitness approach.

My Current Fitness Experiments

• Overstraining – Does overtraining exist? I’m going to find out!! A lot of CrossFitters, especially the competitive ones, are starting to claim overtraining doesn’t exist. This is good and bad because some people can handle absurd volume and others can’t…Anyway, it is now branching outside CrossFit even to bodybuilders (who use the term overtraining more than anyone). I highly suggest you watch this video for an intelligent discussion on the topic.
• Rest Schedules – Another experiment I am running concurrently with overtraining. Blair Morrison opened my eyes to this. For a long time, he trained only three days a week, 3 times a day AND he would take every fourth week completely OFF, and he was (is) one of the fittest dudes on the planet. I am trying a similar approach in my current routine.

I don’t want to get into all the details of what I am doing, but basically I am trying to strategically “overtrain” myself, and strategically rest after an intense overtrianing cycle. That’s my current unique fitness approach, but I am a numbers nerd when it comes to fitness.  So maybe you should start with some of these ideas…

Some Ideas for you:

• Barefoot Running
• Sandbag Fitness
• Reinvent You(FIT) Self 
• Try A Unique work to rest cycle
• Try a new fitness every month like Charlotte
• The list goes on…

A few caveats: 

• Don’t be the rebel without a cause (as stated earlier)
• Don’t use this approach as an excuse to never stick with a program
• Don’t worry about a unique fitness approach if you already love what you do!!

The bottom line. Fitness is a journey.

You have to experiment. When I created One Man One Barbell, and I was working through the program as the first test subject, I knew I had all the book knowledge right, but I had no idea if it would correlate to real results. But slowly it worked for me, my friends, some Eo3Fit athletes and now 100’s of dedicated people out there with all different types of fitness backgrounds (or lack thereof).

The results have been awesome. If that experiment had gone any differently, you would have never heard of One Man One Barbell. Long story short, experiments are worth it!!

Fitness is associated with being “not fun”, yet mandatory if you want to be healthy. This “not fun” association leads to the belief that even if you find something you enjoy in fitness, there will be things you hate.

Neither has to be true. Be unique, find something you love and enjoy your fitness. 

Ultimately, become a better human by any means necessary.

Now go find your unique fitness approach.  

-Jerred

 photo, photo

Today, I want to talk about how to do a squat, rather, I want to teach you how to perform the perfect squat, because chances are…you are doing it wrong, and I don’t care if you can squat 600 lbs, your squat can still suck.  

I’ll be your coach for this “how to do a squat” clinic and my son, William (less than a year old), will provide a demonstration.  

Why you might ask?

Because he has the perfect squat!! I didn’t teach him how to do a squat. I didn’t spend hours working on his mobility. I don’t have to provide tactile feedback to put him in the right position.

Nope, none of that.

William, and most children, have a perfect squat. They are born that way. So what happened?? Somewhere along the way we de-programmed our perfect, natural, human movement. We stop moving the way we should, we stop stretching and we leave our muscles to fend for themselves.

Overtime, we end up with some pretty awful excuses, that we would like to call a “squat”. So let’s fix ourselves.

How To Do A Squat: The Basics

Look at that squat!! Haha, he is a little far forward, but that is mainly because of his desire to play in the water. But his hip crease is below the knee , weight is on the heels, not a total loss of the lumbar curve…This is a great squat!  

Arched Back – Your back has a natural curve, the lumbar curve. You know, the reason your desk chair has a sweet little S-shape to fit right in that spot. When we squat we are not trying to straighten our natural curves. Accentuate this curve but keep your abs tight so as not to over extend the curve. 

Look Straight Ahead – You don’t want to look at the ground, this does you no good. Keep your eyes forward, pick a spot and stare at it while you squat. It will help with your balance and overall alignment of the spine. 

Butt Out & Down – If the butt doesn’t kick out to start your squat than that means your knees are going to have to proceed forward past the toes and, eventually, bring you off you heels. Kick your butt out and down to “sit” comfortably in your squat. 

Weight on Heels – Weight on heels, weight on heels, weight on heels. This is the most important aspect, because I see it so commonly violated. If you do not have the mobility to do a full squat with your weight on your heels, then work on your mobility. Don’t start squatting on your toes as a compromise. Stay off the balls of your feet and keep the pressure on your heels. This will make for a more comfortable deep squat and will help you to be more powerful in the squat. 

High Chest - The easiest way to avoid a proper full-depth squat is to bend over so far that you back is close to a 45 degree angle. Bring your chest up, engage your posterior chain and don’t make your lower back do all the work. 

Tight Midsection – This goes with the arched back. A tight midsection will help keep the natural curvature of the spine. It will increase the internal pressure on your spine and help it be right where it is supposed to be. Honestly, if you aren’t used to it, heavy squats, while focusing on a tight midsection, should leave your abs pretty sore the next day…Can anyone say functional movement? 

Arms Out and Up – This is clearly only for an air squat. Bringing your arms out and up will help with your posture and a high chest.

Knee Tracks Over Foot – Your feet should be pointed slightly outward when you squat. So when you go down your knees should track over the line of your foot. This means your knees will be getting further away from each other and you will be engaging all of the right muscles, which brings me to my last point…

Lastly, USE YOUR MUSCLES – You need to actively be engaging all of your muscles when you are doing squats. Hamstrings, quads, glutes, back etc. This will guarantee you are squatting safely and that you are not letting any laziness or sloppiness wreak havoc on your joints. The muscles should take the load, not your joints. 

Top squatting mistakes and the “Quick Fix”

• That’s not low enough – If you’ve ever been told to not squat below parallel…that’s wrong. A full squat is safe and natural, don’t be scared of the depth. Getting the depth is the challenge! The quick fix is a wide stance, but we are in it for the long haul!!

• I was trying to touch my knees together – You know what I’m talking about. Ask someone to do a squat and their ankles cave inward and their knees follow. Quick Fix: turn the feet out 5-15 degrees, track knees over toes.

• Toes are cooler than heels – This is probably the most common mistake I see. Coming up on the toes during the squat, while it may not be too painful with an air squat, it can be detrimental to the knees once you have some weight on your back. Quick Fix: Put your weight on your heels!!

• The Squat is only about the legs – Nope, sorry. You need to be using pretty much every muscle in your entire body when you squat. Squatting should be not only physically exhausting, but also mentally exhausting from the level of concentration it takes to focus on using your entire body properly. Quick Fix: Think about and apply all of your muscles. 

How To Do A Squat: Your Mobility Challenge 

Give this a try! Can you complete 10 full minutes in the squat?? Try some of my tips and dig deep, you can do this! 

Happy squatting,

-Jerred

I’ve been blogging at End of Three Fitness for a little over a year and a half, but never in that time have I really been open with you guys. For the longest time I tried to keep such a professional tone and style, always walking the line so as not to offend anyone. In the process, you haven’t fully gotten to know me. 

I don’t think that’s fair. 

Every new Eo3 email subscriber gets asked the same question… “What are you struggling with right now?” 

The responses I get and the stories shared are always awesome, and I really appreciate it. I feel like I get to know a lot of you, but you haven’t gotten to know me.

Well here it goes, 19 things I’ve never told you: 

1.) I own a 5 lb. Chihuahua - Yep, you heard it right. My wife, well girlfriend at the time, bought a tiny little puppy while we were in college. I was completely against the idea and didn’t want her at all…but now I love the little fur ball.  

2.) My wife is extremely talented - Emily is the most talented person I know. She has an eye for design, photography,  and it takes her like 5 seconds to get good at something. 

3.) I NEVER read fiction – I have some weird desire to constantly be productive, thus, reading fiction makes me feel unproductive and like I am wasting my time. However, I do like reading. I don’t have as much time for it as I would like, but I do enjoy reading some good ole factual information. 

4.) I was born in Germany – I was an Army brat. My Dad was a helicopter pilot in the Army and was stationed in Germany in the 80’s and that’s when I was born. 

5.) I can juggle and say the alphabet backwards…at the same time – Pretty useless skills, but they are fun to say you can do occasionally. Well, not completely useless, William laughs at me now when I juggle his toys. I learned to say my alphabet backwards back in the day just in case a cop ever gave me a sobriety test…The only thing is that I rarely ever drink and I NEVER drink and drive. So the alphabet thing has been very useless. 

6.) My favorite color is red - Despite the “Eo3 Orange” and the fact that I wear a lot of black, my real favorite color is red. I think it’s because my wife looks great in red. 

7.) I have three friends I’d trust with my life - Having a lot of friends is great, but you’ll ever only have a few friends in your life who you could honestly trust with anything. I only have three friends who have made it to that status and I’d do anything for them in a moments notice. 

8.) When William (my son) smiles I forget the world – I’m a thinker. I’m always on the move, always trying to be better and always thinking. William is the only thing that can truly slow me down for a moment and make me forget everything. 

9.) My family calls me Bam Bam – You know, Bam Bam from the  Flintstones? Yea well, I have very little patience and this is especially true for inanimate objects such as boxes and wrappers. So, if these objects are not cooperative, I force them to be. 

10.) I don’t consider myself a writer - I think I have written well over 250,000 words at End of Three Fitness and that doesn’t include the free eBooks I’ve written or One Man One Barbell. Despite all that, I don’t consider myself a writer. I have a passion for what I do and this is how it comes out. 

11.) I have a milk and peanut butter obsession – Milk and peanut butter, not together necessarily, just two of my biggest weaknesses. I cycle on and off of them and it is a internal battle, but I just love milk and peanut butter too much.  

12.) My favorite movies are Fight Club and Good Will Hunting - I like movies that are different and intriguing. I generally like movies that force me to think. 

13.) I can’t stand quiet – I am actually writing this right now with Pandora going on my laptop, I sleep with a noise maker on and I like music on while I’m at work. I don’t know why. It was a study habit I picked up in college and now I just don’t like silence. 

14.) I am normally in bed before 10 p.m. – I wake up very early everyday and sleep is extremely important, so I do what I have to.  

15.) Despite never training for it…I have mad hops – I was born with speed and the ability to jump. I am 5’ 11” tall and I can come pretty close to dunking, but my standing broad jump is probably my most impressive. 

16.) My wife and I are doing everything we can to live debt free – In the last two years we have paid off $57,000 worth of debt (primarily student loans) and it isn’t our income that is doing that for us. We live extremely budgeted lives and do everything we can to put every penny towards debt each month. I personally believe when you are in debt to no one you are truly free to live life how you please. 

17.) I’m a pretty quiet dude – I don’t like to think of myself as quiet, but most would consider me that way. Most who know me know that I am really just busy thinking, but you can keep talking to me…I can handle both. 

18.) I don’t recognize, or care about, celebrities – If you held up the top 5 celebrity magazines in the nation I probably would go 0 for 5 for each person on the cover. I am not impressed by celebrities and I have just as much interest in them as they have in me. 

19.) I think End of Three Fitness is still in it’s infancy – This little thing I do on the side called End of Three Fitness, I think we are just getting warmed up. I think the website will grow and the community will get bigger and bigger. I’m passionate about what I do here and the people I help. It’s no secret that I plan to make End of Three Fitness my full-time job in the future. It is only a matter of time before that happens. Never treating Eo3 as a business, but rather just throwing ever bit of me into it as I can has made it a lot of fun and always easy. 

Want to know anything else?? 

Ask it in the comments. 

Thanks for reading, 

Jerred 

I know you’ve asked the question. Garage Gym or Commercial Gym? Then maybe you’ve gone one step further…If I go garage gym, should I buy everything or should I build it all?

Each one has its pros and cons, and maybe you have found a combination of all fits your needs, or maybe you are a 100% DIY Garage Gym kind of person. Either way, let’s take a look at some of the factors you should consider.

The infographic above says it all, but here is a little more explanation to each category.

Defining the gyms…

• “All Out” Garage Gym – The garage gymer who really has no budget and would prefer to purchase everything. However, we are not talking about a rich-guy garage gym, all estimates are still feasible and on the low end.
• DIY Garage Gym – On a budget, prefer to build unless it is not feasible, i.e. no DIY barbells or plates, but everything else is fair game. Learn how to build EVERYTHING at the DIY Corner. 
• Commercial Gym – The globo gym!! Your big-timers like LA Fitness and Life Time Fitness.

*Note: “All Out” Garage Gym Recommendations are based off of Rogue Fitness, as they are the only vendor I will publicly endorse. 

Initial Costs (Start up) 

• “All Out” Garage Gym – Based off of the “Warrior Package” at Rogue Fitness, view here. But we added a squat rack and a few other items you would need to purchase to be fully equipped. That leaves us at a minimum $3,200.
• DIY Garage Gym – If you have read 14 Days to Fitness Freedom: The Garage Gym, you know that I show you how to set up a fully functional garage gym in two weeks for $871…and I think it could actually be done for less than that.
• Commercial Gym – Generally, if no specials are running, you will end up paying a signup fee and your first monthly dues. This leaves you, on average, at about $100.

*Note: For the nerds: Calculate how much your time is worth on an hourly basis and factor in the cost to time ratio for the DIY option. 

Winner = Commercial Gym

Time Considerations

• “All Out” Garage Gym & DIY Garage Gym – After the initial costs, a lot of the considerations for these two are exactly the same. With a garage gym, your time is going to increase. You don’t need to muster up the energy to get up extremely early, or in the evening, and scrounge together all the items you “need” for the gym. Wake up, roll into the garage, get fit! 
• Commercial Gym – Commercial gyms are a time suck!! You have the commute (5-20+ minutes), the checkin-put-my-stuff-away-and-get-to-the-exercise-equipment dance (10 minutes), waiting-on-randoms-doing-the-exercise-wrong showdown (10 minutes), the hi-I-see-my-neighbor convo (5 minutes)…do some of that in reverse and we are at over an hour…without factoring in the workout!! 

*Note: If you want to get really technical, factor in the DIY time. 

Winner = Garage Gym

5 Year Cumulative Costs

Ok, I am not getting into a hug debate on how to break down the costs here. I took accounting and finance in college so I know there are more business-appropriate ways to look at this…but that’s not what we are doing. We are going to look at it very simply. How much did it cost me this year? The next year…ask yourself the same question…so on and so forth. 

• “All Out” Garage Gym – You have the expensive year one, then you should really never have to factor in any other costs, especially if it is from Rogue Fitness.
• DIY Garage Gym – Same as the “All Out” Garage Gym, year one holds all the costs, then smooth sailing. Considering it is DIY, and depending on your craftsmanship, your DIY garage gym equipment may only have a 5 year shelf life. Most DIY should last at least 5 years. If you are looking past 5 years, factor in replacement costs.
• Commercial Gym – This just keeps going up and up. See the chart in the infographic, but it is basically the buy or lease argument. A lease has you pouring money into a service, more or less, with no ownership. You keep shelling out money and your ROI is your health. 

Winner = DIY Garage Gym

Resale Value

This is a minor factor, but it is worth a mention.

• “All Out” Garage Gym – You will be able to recoup some of your initial costs by reselling your “All Out” garage gym equipments.
• DIY Garage Gym – Even if you are a badass carpenter, you could only sell your DIY equipment for a few bucks on craigslist, at best. You may have to actually pay someone to haul it off.
• Commercial Gym - Absolutely no resale value.

Winner = “All Out” Gym

Other Considerations 

• “All Out” Garage Gym – Safety. Installation mistakes. Shipping time/costs.
• DIY Garage Gym – Safety. DIY mistakes.
• Commercial Gym – Travel expenses, commuting adds up. The globo gyms can suck you in with their $9 eggs and $7 protein shake smoothies, that you know you will fall prey to at least a few times. People are always a factor in a gym (not garage gym) setting and you need to decide if you like the people or if they make you want to set off the lunk alarm. 

In the end, you have to decide what works best for you. But whatever you decide, here are some resources for you:

“All Out” Garage Gym – Rogue Fitness
DIY Garage Gym – End of Three Fitness DIY Corner 

I would love to hear your thoughts! What am I missing?

Also, please share this post with your friends

-Jerred

Read about fitness, new exercises, great ideas or new programs. That’s all great, but none of that is YOU DOING fitness. 

I write about fitness weekly, but nothing I write matters unless you get out there and do something!! Fitness is about focus. How long can you stick with something? But sometimes just getting started is half the battle. 

It’s all baby steps. Take one small step, a little progress. Take another small step, a little more progress. 

In the end you will have achieved all your goals…so long as you keep moving froward. Here are a few small steps you can do today, to get yourself ready for a fit-tomorrow. If you do some of these things, let me know by adding to the comments. If you have your own ideas or suggestions for others, add that to the comments too. I would love to hear about it! 

Action #1: Join a Crew (60 seconds)

This one is pretty easy. Join a crew that will hold you accountable and keep you motivated.

• Join the End of Three Fit Crew for a daily workout delivered to your inbox (FREE), and an ever-growing community of people bettering themselves while helping out each other.
• Make your own crew. Get a workout partner (friend, spouse, neighbor…) that will commit to a specific set of time, i.e. 6-8 weeks.
• If you didn’t already receive this post via email…you should join the mailing list. We are nearing a 2,000 person community of those who want to be better than they were yesterday; members get access to free resources for you to take advantage of.

Action #2: Start a Workout Journal (5 minutes)

I am not talking about some over-complicated write down everything I ate, every calorie burned workout journal.

Just track your fitness. Plain and simple.

See that you are getting better. For me, it is as simple as writing my workout down on a whiteboard, snapping a picture with my phone and shooting it to Evernote – Here are detailed instructions on “How To Use Evernote to Dominate Your Fitness”.

Action #3: Eat and Drink (Throughout the day)

If you are hungry, dehydrated or have been eating poorly…you generally don’t want to workout. Your motivation will be zapped and you won’t feel you are prepared for the next day’s workout.

Drink enough water today, and eat as healthy as you can.  

Action #4: Set an Alarm (10 seconds)

You can show your commitment for tomorrow by setting an alarm on your phone right now.

Let’s face it, pushing your fitness to the end of the day doesn’t always work. Start you day off tomorrow with fitness. Set your alarm for about an hour earlier than you would normally workout…and actually GET UP when the alarm goes off.

Action #5: Get Your Workout Clothes Ready (5 minutes)

This goes with setting your alarm. I’ve been there…alarm goes off…you think, “Ah man I don’t know where my favorite socks are, I think my workout clothes are in the laundry, [insert excuse here]…back to bed”.

Not today.

Set out your workout clothes in your room today, and be ready for tomorrow.

Action #6: Write a Workout Down (5 minutes)

This goes with setting your alarm and setting out your clothes (trying to eliminate all excuses here, if you can’t tell).

Remember that workout journal? Write down the workout you want to do tomorrow, today. Now, things get pretty simple…

• Alarm goes off, you get up.
• Put on your already prepared clothes.
• And go do you pre-planned workout.

Action #7: Find a Program (30 minutes)

Writing one workout down is great and that will get you ready for tomorrow, but what about the next day?

Take some time to find a program that works for you and you find interesting. Currently, End of Three Fitness only offers one program (more to come) called One Man One Barbell, and you can check it out here.

But you don’t have to do my program. Do something that will help you achieve your goals and make you a better human.

Find a program. Research it. Commit to it.

Action #8: Weekly Fitness Planning (15 minutes)

So if you do not want to find a program, and are capable of programming a week (or more) of fitness for yourself, go for it!

Plan out a full week of what you are going to do and when you are going to do it.

Action #9: Tell Someone Your Plans to Workout Tomorrow (60 seconds)

If you are married, like me, I like to occasionally let me wife know I plan to workout in the morning. So when I don’t, and she says “Hey, weren’t you going to workout this morning?” I feel a little like crap and it motivates me to do so the next time.

It doesn’t have to be a spouse or significant other; we could go with friend or neighbor. Or if you like posting workout stuff to Facebook (you know who you are), maybe try it there.  

Action #10: Find Your Fitness Resources (30 minutes)

You need to find a place where you can pull information that you trust. It can be a book, a PDF or a website.

Hint, hint…Maybe End of Three Fitness can be one of your resources. It is always good to have more than one, but I would love to be one of them (if it isn’t already, shout out to my loyal readers!!) 

At Eo3 we are always striving to get better, for you.

Action #11: Write Down Your “Why?” (5 minutes)

Back to that trusty workout journal…this should be your first page.

Why are YOU doing it? Why do you want to be fit? Why do you want to be healthy.  For me, I have a picture of my son, William, in my evernote journal. That’s about the only why I need.

You can put down reasons like “six-pack” or “lose 20 lbs”, but those never last…You need a big picture why, like I want to live a better life, or be alive for a long time. Then after you set your big picture why, then go to the small goals.

Action #12: Quick and Dirty Education (Start today, continue forever)

If you are rather new to fitness, you need to start with education. This is similar to finding a resource, but you need to start with a foundation of knowledge.

Few places offer this, and even fewer for free. There is not a one size fits all place for this. 

Action #13: Get Your Mind Right (Time Unknown)

Your body doesn’t care what you do, really. It’s that melon on top of your neck that makes the call to quit, back down or not give it your max effort.

Decide you are going to be a mental toughness practitioner. Every time your mind says “no” or “stop”, you respond, “just one more minute” or “just 5 more reps”.

Then do it!  

Action #14: Write Down Your Biggest Excuse (2 minutes)  

Your reason for not working out is no better than anyone else’s.

Write down your biggest excuse. Then write down the solution to your excuse. Don’t be a baby, you will not be catered to.

Action #15: Recognize your weaknesses (5 minutes)

You’ve got ‘em. I’ve got ‘em. We’ve all got ‘em.

Weaknesses.

Why is that the hardest question for people to answer during a job interview is “What is your biggest weakness?”; maybe because we don’t like to think of ourselves being capable of any weaknesses, when we are all full of them.

Work on recognizing your biggest weakness when it comes to fitness.

Did you find it?

Now kill it!

Action #16 (optional): Watch Something Inspirational (60ish minutes)

There has got to be a YouTube video, movie or documentary that gets your heart pumping and makes you want to workout.

The Rocky movies do it for a lot of people, but I tried to break it down for you a little bit more specifically.  

Some suggestions:

• Maybe a quick one – How Bad Do You Want It? (Success) 
• For you lifter/bodybuilder types out there – Pumping Iron 
• For you runner/endurance types – Running The Sahara
• For you CrossFitters – SISU

Action #17 (optional): Build or Buy Something (Depends)

You know, as well as I do, getting a new toy always has a certain level of motivation attached to it. Typically this motivation, achieved through a purchase, has a shelf life of about 24-48 hours, but nonetheless it will get you started.

Get a new toy.

What I have found comes with a greater sense of accomplishment and has a much longer motivation shelf life, is building something.

Build something that will help you achieve your fitness goals – Learn how to here at the DIY Corner.

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Now go do something that will make you better tomorrow.

PS – If you liked this post, or think it will help someone you know, please share it. I would be forever grateful.

Sharing links over here (if you are not in your inbox) ——————————————>

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What are you supposed to do when you get injured? Should you stop training? Should you rest? What is the best way to heal? 

All valid questions. So let’s talk injuries! 

Surprisingly, this is the first time we have taken an in-depth look at injuries at End of Three Fitness. I fault this to the fact that I have avoided any serious injuries for about a decade (knock on wood!). 

But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been injured. 

When I say serious, I mean something involving surgery or LONG periods away from fitness. I have injured my knee in the past, and still get some weird feelings in it, on occasion, and I have been battling a chronic wrist problem for the last couple of months and I haven’t wanted to admit that I was “injured” until I realized I could’t even do push-ups comfortably anymore…

That left me with the question: I’m injured…Now what? 

Injuries…The Facts

Injuries are (somewhat) unavoidable. The longer you are into fitness the greater chance you have of getting injured. This shouldn’t prevent anyone from working out. That would be like saying you aren’t going to drive your car anymore because you could get in an fender bender. 

When I started writing this article I decided I didn’t want to give you a 100% opinion-based article. I want to share some of my experiences, but also put in the research. So that’s what I did. 

Most common injuries: 

• Sprains and strains
• Knee injuries
• Swollen muscles
• Achilles tendon injuries
• Pain along the shin bone
• Fractures
• Dislocations

Types….

• Acute Pain is of rapid onset and short-lived.
• Chronic Pain develops slowly and is persistent and long-lasting.

What makes you fit, can make you injured… 

• There are three aspects that go into a any good fitness program: intensity, duration and frequency.
• Aspects that can influence the risk of injuries: intensity, duration and frequency.

But…

• Frequency and duration attribute the most to the risk of injury, and intensity shows little correlation to injury. 
• So no excuses to scale back on intensity (when you are not injured)…but NEVER sacrifice perfect form for intensity. 

Other factors…

• Old age
• Smoking
• Sedentary jobs and lifestyle
• High or low flexibility
• High arches of the feet (runners mainly) 

So what am I saying? Well let me put it all together in one gigantic run-on sentence: 

There are a lot of injuries that can occur, and a lot of them will occur within your joints and extremities, try to keep a good balance of intensity, duration and frequency, but try not to workout too many times in a day and keep the workouts you do do shorter rather than longer, but never sacrifice intensity, yet keep good form, furthermore if you are old, be extra careful, if you smoke, quit, don’t be sedentary, ever, work on your mobility regularly and wear the proper footwear that is good for you. 

It’s that easy

Getting Over The Injury

I don’t have a big super secret to getting over injury. BUT I want to talk about both sides of injury (most don’t)…

• The Physical
• The Mental

Let’s start with…

The Physical

Physical recovery, you’ve heard it before and you’ll here it again. RICE. 

• Rest 
• Ice
• Compression 
• Elevation 

The RICE method is very common and will relieve pain, reduce swelling and speed healing. RICE is the best method for an acute injury and should be done immediately. 

If you have chronic injury it is best to apply heat, as it increases circulation and loosens muscles. If things are a bit more serious…start thinking medicine, doctors and things of that nature. 

Now, if you are like me, you will do the ICE, not RICE, method. Which is basically…just put some ice on it and train tomorrow….

Don’t do that!! 

You have to rest. It is that simple. Sometimes it is a few days and sometimes it is weeks and weeks, but you need to keep a macro-view of fitness and health. We aren’t doing this to be fit for a year. We are doing the things we do to be fit and healthy for a lifetime. Rest!! 

Training While Injured? 

I get this question quite often…can I train while I am injured? The answer is always…it depends. Most of the time, you can train with an injury, so long as it is not severe. 

You just need to find what you CAN do. Which may not be what you are doing currently…at all. 

For instance, I said earlier than I am battling a chronic wrist injury. I know that heavy weights overhead and the rack position hurt my wrist. So guess what I am not doing? I am not lifting heavy things overhead and I am trying to avoid the rack position. But I am STILL training. I am taking an endurance focus on my training for the time being (something I NEVER do) until my wrist gets back to normal. 

Find what you can do. If you can’t do anything…that’s where the mental part of recovery comes into play. 

The Mental

The mental aspect of recovery is VERY important, and yet, very rarely focused on. Whether you cannot train, and it is very important to you, or you have a long road to recovery, you need to keep focused on staying positive and believing that you are recovering quickly. 

No joke, they have done studies on this, to quote one specific study: 

“Subjects who perceived themselves as recovering rapidly made more stable, personally controllable, and externally controllable attributions than subjects who perceived themselves as recovering slowly.” 

Perception goes a long way. To quote another study: 

Injury rehabilitation programs that include the use of psychological skills, such as mental imagery and relaxation, may benefit through higher adherence rates and faster recovery times.

So if you think a little ice and stretching is going to help you recover, think again. Stick to the basics when it comes to both chronic and acute injuries, but don’t forget the mental aspect.

Know you will recover. See yourself recovering. Apply physical recovery principles.

Here’s to safe training and quick recovery, 

-Jerred 

Sources and Recommended Reading:

• Attributions for recovery and adherence to sport injury rehabilitation.
• Psychological Issues in Sport Injury Rehabilitation: Current Knowledge and Practice
• Athletic Trainers’ and Physical Therapists’ Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Psychological Skills Within Sport Injury Rehabilitation Programs
• The use of cryotherapy in sports injuries.
• Ice or Heat an Injury
• Sports Injuries
• Exercise, training and injuries.

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]]> http://www.endofthreefitness.com/im-injurednow-what-training-and-injury/feed/ 0 http://www.endofthreefitness.com/fitness-and-world-war-ii-strength-edition/ http://www.endofthreefitness.com/fitness-and-world-war-ii-strength-edition/#comments Mon, 15 Apr 2013 13:04:54 +0000 Jerred Moon http://www.endofthreefitness.com/mysecretredesign/fitness-and-world-war-ii-strength-edition/ ​Are you stronger or handier than the military men of the 1940's? ​

Fitness was a different beast 70 years ago!! Isn't there just an overall feeling that if we took the 20-something version of ourselves, put us against the 20-something version of our grandpas...we would get destroyed. ​

Military Men in the 1940's were serious about fitness. They didn't want it to be complicated, they built most of their own equipment (barbells included!!) and they focused on functional movement. 

Sounds right in line with End of Three Fitness!!​

Are you stronger or handier than the military men of the 1940′s?

Fitness was a different beast 70 years ago!! Is it just me, or isn’t there an overall feeling that if we took the 20-something version of ourselves, put us against the 20-something version of our grandpas…we would get destroyed.

Military Men in the 1940′s were serious about fitness. They didn’t want it to be complicated, they built most of their own equipment (barbells included!!) and they focused on functional movement. 

Sounds right in line with End of Three Fitness!!

I have done, and do, a lot of research on the history of fitness. My love for diving into how things were done back in the day came about when I stumbles across a physical education book from the 1920′s in an old book store, that’s when I wrote, The 1920′s Knew Fitness, We Just Forgot…Now we fast forward 20 years to the 1940′s. So what was the military doing around the 1940′s in relation to fitness? 

Fitness and World War II will be a spaced-out series. Today, we talk about DIY strength. First, we are going to start with my personal favorite, The War Club.

The War Club

Right off the bat (no pun intended) I get excited about WWII fitness!! 

Why?

DIY, my friends!!

Exactly as pictured, it was a club with a handle and it weighed around 20 lb.

Quick and Dirty DIY Instructions:

• 1 large can filled with concrete
• Handle of any convenient wood 
• Combine can with handle = War Club!!

War Club Directions for Use:

• Swing violently from right to left and left to right.
• Swing from over one shoulder to down by the ground on the other side, in a chopping motion.
• Swing around the head, one hand at a time.  

That’s about as functional as you can get, especially for a war-fightin’ generation. I haven’t done it yet, but I plan to build one of these in the near future. 

Functional strength at its finest!!

Grip and Twist

Ahh, grip strength, something often overlooked by most athletes out there. But now your WWII GI!! You may have used something like this before, but I love the ingenuity. 

Another DIY project (so financially sound and responsible)

Quick and Dirty DIY Instructions:

• 1 large can filled with concrete (again)
• Attach sash cord, 4 ft. long, in concrete can
• Attach other end of cord to the middle of a handle (I guess use the same kind of wood you used for the War Club)

Grip and Twist Directions for Use:

• Hold arms forward, wind up the weight on the cord by twisting the handle backward, until it is wound. When the cord is completely wound on the handle, unwind the cord slowly, releasing one hand at a time. Then wind the cord up again, this time twisting forward.

This one is a burner!!

DIY Barbell

This is something I have flirted with building on End of Three Fitness…just to see if people think I am crazy, but I have refrained. Well, apparently, in the 1940′s building your own barbell was pretty commonplace. 

Quick and Dirty DIY Instructions:

• 1 – 1 in. to 1.5 in iron pipe.
• Any you guessed it…Two cans filled with concrete on either end of the pipe. 
• These homemade barbell typically ranged anywhere from 40-60 lb. 

Barbell Directions for Use: 

• Snatch: Stand close to and grasping the bar with feet 12 to 18 inches apart and straight ahead. Pull barbell upward to the overhead position in one motion. At the same time, split the left foot forward and the right foot backward to a lunge position. The movement is almost like a dropping under the bell. Inhale as the bell goes up. Then recover the rear foot forward to the front foot, and return the bell to the ground in two movements: first to the top of the chest, and then to the ground. Alternate the feet. Repeat as many times as possible up to 20.
• Military Press: Hold bell in front of the upper chest and stand in good posture. Keep palms forward. Inhaling, press the bell upward to the overhead position. Keep trunk erect, and press bell upward and slightly backward over the crown of the head. Then lower the bell slowly to the starting position, exhaling. Repeat as many times as possible up to 20.
• Two Hand Curl: Standing erect, hold bell in front of the hips, keeping arms parallel and palms forward. The chest should be arched. The elbows remain at the sides. Flex elbows, and lift weight until bar touches the upper chest. Inhale with the upward movement, and exhale with the downward movement. Repeat this as many times as possible up to 20.
• Two Hand High Pullup: Stand close to the bar with feet 12 to 18 inches apart and straight ahead. Bend forward with back straight as possible and grasp the bar, palms down, with arms parallel. Lift the weight slowly until it is fully overhead, inhaling on the upward movement. Then exhaling, lower the bell slowly to the ground. Repeat as many times as possible up to 20. Keep back straight throughout.

That’s right people. Don’t let anyone doing Olympic lifts these days fool you…They aren’t new!! Cats were doing high-rep split snatch in the 1940′s.  They kept it functional. The above instructions are straight from their training manual. If you want a little more in-depth look at the snatch maybe read my article, So You Want To Learn How To Snatch. 

So what do you think? Could you hang with some dudes from WWII?

If this gets you fired up for some DIY fitness, go check out the DIY Corner.

Build it. Use it. Get fit.

-Jerred

Sources: FM 21-20, 1946. photo

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Let’s talk mental toughness.  

Mental toughness is something we talk about pretty regularly at End of Three Fitness. One of the most popular articles at Eo3 is Simple(ish) Ways to Build Mental Toughness and Mental Toughness is one of the three driving principles in the End of Three Fitness Philosophy. So it makes since that the Mental Toughness Militia is on it’s way (will reveal more soon)! 

Later today, I will be interviewing, perhaps the most accredited mental toughness expert in the world, Mark Divine, and I want to know what YOU would want to ask Mark before I head into the interview today. I will explain more in this post, but I wanted you to know upfront I am looking to see what YOU would want to ask him, and if you have any questions please add them to the comments.  

Then I want to briefly talk about Mikko Salo, as he is no doubt the most mentally tough person I can think of. A lot to cover today, so let’s get started! 

Mark Divine: Mental Toughness Expert

I first found Mark Divine about three years ago when I followed the programming at SEALFIT.com. If you haven’t heard of SEALFIT programming, check it out. It is not for the faint of heart. Anyway, Mark Divine is the founder and CEO of SEALFIT and one very impressive dude. If you have two minutes you should…

• Read his Bio Here

If you don’t have two minutes, Mark is a former Navy SEAL officer, he graduated as honor-man (#1 ranked trainee) of his SEAL BUD/s class number 170, former CPA, collegiate athlete and a successful entrepreneur. He really knows his stuff and he KNOWS mental toughness. 

• Who better to interview for the Mental Toughness Milita than Mark Divine??

I have already prepared for the interview and plan to ask him some practical advice and application for the creation and implementation of the Mental Toughness Militia, but….

• What do you want to know??

I would love to have a few questions from my readers to ask, so if you have any questions about mental toughness, or a related topic, please add them to the comments!!

This is one of many interviews (and probably the most important) I am doing to make the Mental Toughness Militia the most valid resource available for you, me and anyone else who wants to build mental toughness.

Mikko Salo: THE Mental Toughness Practitioner 

I pointed you to an article I wrote a few months ago called, Simple(ish) Way to Build Mental Toughness, and the first piece of advice I gave was…

• Take away extrinsic motivators in a workout

This is something I do quite often, well, Mikko Salo who won the 2009 CrossFit Games, seems to think this is a good idea too.

Mikko Salo is a big name in CrossFit, but CrossFit has nothing to do what I am talking about. I only want to focus on this guys approach to mental toughness.

There is a new video on YouTube of him doing one of the recent open workouts. It is a 30 min video, but you really only need to watch minutes 8-10 to catch the Mental Toughness discussion. 

Some quotes from Mikko:

In response to the question “Will anyone cheer you on in this workout?”:

No, it’s (cheering) for ladies (laughs). If you can’t do a workout without cheering, what’s the point?  

Another thing about training; if you need music for training, go get another hobby. You have to be able to train without music also.

• Watch on YouTube

I think we could all take a page out of the Mikko Salo mental toughness book. If you haven’t tried the “no extrinsic motivators” workout yet…go try it!! It is one of the only ways to really get to know yourself.

Who are you when your guard is down and you are at the point of exhaustion? Go find out!!

If you don’t like the person you find…change it.

End of Three Fitness: Mental Toughness Militia

The mental toughness militia started off on a small scale but it is quickly escalating to something much bigger. I thought I was ready to start with beta testers a few weeks ago, but a few opportunities have presented themselves and I want make the mental toughness militia something very relevant and useful for all who use it.

That means I am continuing in my quest to talk to the right people (Mark Divine) and study the right things to get this perfect. Don’t worry, I will have an announcement for when beta testing is ready. 

I am getting really excited about where things are headed and glad I can involve the End of Three Fitness community in every step of the process.

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Remember, any questions for Mark Divine add them to the comments ASAP, my interview is today.

For the Mental Toughness Milita!!

-Jerred

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First, I want to start off by saying sorry to all my email subscribers. I upgraded my site to a new and faster service…which is awesome, but unfortunately this confused my email subscription service (not happy with them at the moment) and you probably got spammed with about 10 emails yesterday.

I apologize.

End of Three Fitness is growing so these changes are 100% necessary to keep up, but I’ll be the first to admit…I am not the best with code and the backend of a websites…

I know more about fitness and barbells. Despite the members we lost yesterday due to, what I’ll call, “inbox frustrations”, the revolution must go on! So we will press on with a new 6-week challenge!!

This will be the third 6-week challenge at End of Three Fitness, so I have decided to call it “Better Humans: Chapter 3”.

For anyone new to the challenges or new to End of Three Fitness, here is how it works: 

• Challenges run for 6-weeks

• Works are posted eveyday (except Thursday and Sunday) at EndofThreeFit.com

That’s about all you need to know to get started.

Better Humans: Chapter 3, The Challenge 

I took a quick poll from the regular gang at End of Three Fit and it looks like everyone wants to get better at everything, with an emphasis on strength…so let’s do it!!

Our baseline is pretty simple, and if you have been following End of Three Fit pretty regularly, you have done both of these workouts recently. So either use your most recent numbers or do these two workouts:

Better Humans: Chapter 3 – The Baseline

“CrossFit Total”

• Back squat, 1 rep
• Shoulder Press, 1 rep
• Deadlift, 1 rep

Add all numbers together for you “total”

Example: 225 lb max back squat + 150 lb max shoulder press + 300 lb max deadlift = 675 lb total

Rest for a long period (20 min minimum)

Then…

Three rounds for time:

• Run 400 meters
• 1 1/2 pood Kettlebell X 21 swings (or 55 pound dumbbell swing)
• 12 Pull-ups

But Wait! There’s More: AnywhereFit Saturdays

Every Saturday of this challenge is meant to be outside, because depending on where you live, the weather should be getting nicer. Also, you gotta get outside the confines of your gym or garage gym and apply your fitness. 

This means that Saturdays will be primarily bodyweight and skill work. So have fun, go out to a park, fire up the grill invite friends or family and get your workout done in the process. 

AnywhereFit Saturdays!! 

Will you take the challenge?? 

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Shorter than normal post today, because all I really want is for you to TAKE the challenge! If you are bored, hop out of your inbox and come check out the site, EndofThreeFitness.com, it may not look that different, but A LOT has changed behind the scenes. 

New site changes include

• FASTER website, thus less time waiting for DIY posts to load  
• SAFER website, near impenetrable security…keeps us all safe. 
• COOLER website, integrated Eo3 Store with an overall cleaner look and feel.

And the revolution grows stronger!

-Jerred