The Bulgarian training bag is a sand bag with handles, can be used for countless exercises, and a must have for your home gym.
All you will need to make your very own Bulgarian training bag is a car inner tube, knife or box cutter, zip ties, sand or other filler, and some duct tape. Cut the inner tube, fill it with desired amount of sand or other filler to weight you want, zip tie off ends w/ enough room at each end for handles to grip. Duct tape handles (optional). Below video shows you how to build your own and some exercise ideas.
Use bags to add resistance to bodyweight exercises like squats, lunges, plyometric jumps, and stairs. Swinging movements will promote and increase balance, stability, trunk, and rotational strength. Use at the beginning of your training session for a dynamic warm up, or to intensify conditioning work.
Today I finish the 3 week pushup and pullup challenge. Based on the principle of synaptic facilitation this is a sure fire way to stimulate growth and add muscle confusion to your training. No gym, no problem do it at home with your DIY pull up bar. You can add resistance to your push ups by elevating your feet on an exercise ball or chair. If you are able to perform 25+ push ups at a time, substitute some of the reps with dips, and explosive push ups.
Pull ups: shoulder width grip or wider, palms facing out, from hang.
3 weeks, 6 days a week, 100 push-ups and 50 pull ups a day.
Additionally, I trained shoulders and legs a couple of times during the week. Kettlebell swings, snatches, overhead press, pistols, and squat variations. Try it for yourself.
If President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus hasn’t made it’s way to your pocket yet and you’re looking for ways to cut back, your gym membership may be on the chopping block of monthly expenses. Not having a gym to go to anymore doesn’t mean your training or fitness goals have to suffer. Take the opportunity to try something new, get creative, and explore your surroundings. Just outside your door there is a whole world of things to climb, jump over and run around. In your living room or garage there is plenty of space to train with body weight and minimal equipment, as well. Let’s look at some practical ways to build your own home gym and cut the cord on that gym membership.
Bodyweight training is free, requires a small amount of room, and is great place to start. Training tools like heavy ropes, sandbags, pull up bars, and gymnastic rings can all be made from household items in your garage or with materials purchased at your local home improvement store. Craigslist’s sporting section and Ebay are great places to find discounted equipment and weights as well.
For variety and a great way to keep your home clutter-free, visit your neighborhood playground for some free outdoor training equipment. Jungle gym training with pull-ups and dips provide a one stop shop for your upper body. Plyometric jumps outdoors, and box jumping on park benches are another great alternative for the lower half.
Kettlebells are pricey, but can replace an entire gym full of equipment. Start your collection with one, and build up from there. I once took a break from the gym for about 18 months and trained almost exclusively with kettlebells. My conditioning base, flexibility, grip strength, and explosiveness were all greatly improved and brought a well needed balance to my body that I didn’t get from traditional strength training.
In summary, the training possibilities are endless outside of the gym. Training at home, the park, or outdoors can not only save you money and time but is also a great way to confuse your body and get out of a rut.
For other ideas contact kyle@striveperformance.com, and if you are in the San Antonio area set up an appointment for some out of the box fun.
Note: straps are the only A.G.M. (attention getting mechanism) allowed in the gym. Gloves are completely unacceptable. Take the gloves and your skirt off, sissy.
Years ago I never left the locker room with out my wrist straps in hand. I used them for every pull, for every row, every clean, every pull up. I continued this for several years and went through several pairs wearing out the cotton straps after a few months. A coach I worked with turned me on to some old leather straps he had. I later decided to make my own. The pictured pair is made from two old belts that I cut down to about 30″ lengths and simply taped the ends together. In a minute or less you’ve got your very own bullet proof straps. To make more supple and protect the leather, I will rub them down with some shaving cream every few weeks.
Materials: (2) 30″ lengths cut from leather belts, duct or electrical tape.
Part 2: Why I use them less frequently. A few years ago when I began with kettlebells the first thing to fail on my snatch attempts was my grip. Exposed was my weak grip. Since starting kettlebell work, I use the straps much less. Although weaker than I would like, my grip has gained strength. A direct benefit from sparing use of straps.
I found this link on how to make the above pictured pull up bar. This site has lots of cool ideas for making your own stuff and it is great. You can check other posts of mine for making your own rings, trapeze bars, and parallettes.
Sled pulling improves explosiveness, power, and your conditioning base. Just about anything can be pulled, and there are an infinite number of ways to do it. In the video, 2 hand pull, duck walk pull, and 2 hand press are shown. Sled pulling and the variations that can be done carry over well to athletic performance and engage the entire body. Good old fashioned work that increases leg drive and explosion off the start. Pulls and pressess can be used to get the chest, back, and shoulders involved. Increase the load to improve strength and lighter loads at a faster pace to work on your acceleration and conditioning.
I made one for my daughter and one for me, I had everything in my shed, except for the rope.
Materials:
Rope: I bought a 100′ for $9.97 at Lowe’s. 100′ is overkill, but extra chord is always handy, and $.58 by the foot was too expensive.
Lead pipe (closet clothes rod): Free
pvc: 3/4″ or 1″ is preferred, but I had 1/2″ left over from working on my sprinklers. Also, I made a little one for my 2 year old daughter and the 1/2″ fits her little hands well.
Duct tape: You can use electrical as well. Tape is used for capping sand filled 18″ pvc that you are making into rings. I also used it for taping ends of cut rope.
Sand: Play sand can be purchased for $4 or $5 for a bag of 40lbs. The sand is used to fill the 18″ lengths of pvc to help them retain shape. Click here for detailed instructions of how to make the rings.
Version 1.0 has stationary rings with a single piece of uncut rope. V.2 the includes adjustable rings. The easiest and most popular way to do this is with tie down straps found at any hardware or home improvement store.
tie-down-straps
Most people use tie down straps with their rings to allow for easy adjustment. They will cost you less than $15 for a pair and come in various sizes and prices. I decided to try and do it all with rope. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the best way. I looked for the best knot that would allow me to adjust the height of the ring quickly. I had attempted this before by shortening the rope connected to the ring w/ a slip knot, but getting the rings level was too difficult. I had almost given up when I found the Prusik knot or Triple sliding hitch. This climbing knot allows for gripping and sliding, and perfect for replacing tie down straps.
Rings offer a unique challenge in stabilization when performing movements from push-ups, dips, pull-ups, and a world of variations and degrees of resistance.
Put a wrinkle into your training, and add some dynamic stimulus. These 6 exercises will give you some ideas and variations with sandbags and bodyweight to add some muscle confusion to your day.
Sandbags shift resistance throughout the movement and improve balance and stabilization throughout the body. Sandbags provide a tremendously functional form of strength and conditioning training. The more awkward the more muscle groups get involved providing a great way to train the entire body. Hips, trunk, and grip strength are just a few body parts that will benefit.
Not just for jumping or climbing anymore, heavy rope training offers an effective and inexpensive way to train. A friend introduced me to swinging the heavy ropes a few years ago, it was an easy sell. A great alternative for expensive equipment, a large rope can be purchased at just about any hardware store, and can give you one heck of a shoulder stabilizing, total body strengthening, and overall conditioning tool. Variations include individual or partner battles, multiple swings, pulls, and more.
An effective method for shoulder rehab and injury prevention this dynamic multi-joint movement can increase stamina and strength to the entire shoulder girdle, core, and grip.
The Grappler Throw increases hip and grip strength.
Gymnastic rings are a terrific tool for tons of exercises. Pull-ups, muscle-ups, dips, to name a few movements that can be taken to a whole new level with rings. I recommend using 1″ pvc, but I made mine out of 3/4″ and they have done fine. Click here for instructions on how to make your own rings. It is inexpensive and easier than you think
Kyle has coached at the high school and university level in Texas and has worked with athletes of all ages for over 15 years. Kyle spent 5 years in Houston-area High Schools, and later was named Strength and Conditioning Coach at Texas State, heading up the Football, Baseball, and Women's Basketball programs.
