Foam Rolling will change your life.  Exercises will improve flexibility, relieve pain, and help to prevent injury. For @ $20 you can add this invaluable piece of equipment to your home gym.

This one is definitely a step up from the $20 version of the foam composite variety, and will hit you hard in all the right spots.  The pvc center adds a punch and durability that you won’t get from the beginner model.  The yoga mat adds comfort and grip to prevent sliding.

What you will need:

24″ long 4″ PVC  – I bought mine at Lowe’s for @$7.00

24″ wide yoga mat from Wal-Mart @$10.00

You will also need pvc purple and glue.

Thanks to Ryan Duncan at SpeedTraining.net for the great idea.

Hip mobility

Next:

10 Walk outs or Inch Worms

10 Burpees

1 hand high pull (dumbbell or kettlebell)  3 x 8-12 reps w/ each arm

1 hand overhead squat (dumbbell or kettlebell)  3 x 8-12 reps w/ each arm

1 leg  2 hand dumbbell or kettlebell over head press. 3 x 8-12 reps w/ each leg

3 X 20 walking lunges

80 pushups in as many rounds as it takes.

watch?v=eAd3rjZSaiw

Burpees: 10 X 2

Figure 8 to a hold: 20 X 2

watch?v=-k76_kgnxTY

Swings (1 arm kettlebell) 20 X 3

Bent over Rows 10 X 3

Bodyweight squats 20 X 3

Push ups 15 X 3

Overhead Press 15 X 3

The R.I.C.E. principle is one of the first things you learn in the athletic training room.  Limit your down time with these principles and aggressively treat your injury, and get back in the game sooner.  I recently rolled an ankle and got to put this into practice once again.  Within an hour, I was able to get the ankle iced, wrapped, and elevated.  I was able to reduce my down time, embarrassment, and pain.

The severity of injury and your commitment to following these principles w/ heavy emphasis on rest and ice will determine the success of the healing process.  Treatment is the first step and rehab is next.  This treatment strategy will be the first step in the healing process, followed by rehab that will get you back to full speed sooner.

Rest- sleep and staying off injured bodypart

Ice- Reduces swelling and pain by constricting blood vessels and helps the healing begin by pushing damaged blood out of the injured area.

Compression- bandage or compression sleeve helps reduce swelling.

Elevation- when possible keep the injured body part above the heart to reduce swelling and pain.

One-arm Front Squat

From a question the other day on how to perform a proper one-arm kettlebell front squat.  The video above is a good example of the proper technique.

In any squat movement hip and hamstring flexibility along with trunk strength are important and weaknesses will be exposed.

The technique for a one armed kettlebell squat begins with the above and moves to the rack of the kettlebell.  The grip is like an ok sign w/ the thumb against the sternum.  Elbow will be resting on the iliac crest of the hip.  Next, unlock hips and proceed through a proper squat.

Lack of depth and an inability to squat properly is often the result of any one or more of the following: improper technique, lack of hip flexibility, and or lack of core stability.  In some cases there maybe be some structural imbalances, but in most cases practice and time will improve.  Hip mobility, foam rolling, and dynamic flexibility exercises are great places to start.  Variations of the squat (front, single leg, bulgarian, and overhead squats) will expose and develop weakness and imbalances in technique.  Take the time to squat at a proper depth with little or no weight.  Put the misinformation you’ve been told aside and stop worrying about how much weight is on the bar.  In a short amount of time you’ll feel better, be stronger, more mobile/flexible, and more fit.

Make sure your approach to training and exercise are aligned w/ your goals.  What are your goals?  Do you want to improve your health and fitness, or are you training for a specific sport/ competition?  How long has it been since you set goals?  Do you have a clear picture of what you are trying to achieve?

Assess your priorities regularly.  Through a lifetime your goals change, and so should your exercise and nutrition plan.  Take a step back, look at what you are trying to accomplish.  Make sure that how you are training and eating is going to get you there.  If what you are doing isn’t helping you achieve your goal, it’s time to make a change.

Regular exercise boosts your ability to fight illness through reduced stress and improved immune system.  Stress reduction improves sleeping patterns and mental health keeping your nervous system and immune system in top shape to fight off infection.  Additionally, regular exercise increases your body’s circulation of macrophages that kill bacteria, protozoa, and other foreign cells.

Good stuff from a 50 year old that can still go.  God bless Herschel.  Unfortunately, I don’t think a few jumping jacks, push ups, jump rope, and some high knees are going to render the same results for the rest of us non- genetic wonders.