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5 Big Reasons Why Everyone Should Train Like Athletes

March 10, 2010

adrian wilson.si 5 Big Reasons Why Everyone Should Train Like AthletesGuys, I’ve been saying it for years- you gotta train old school and you gotta train like an athlete, no matter what your goal.  Someone who wholeheartedly agrees with me is my buddy and professional strongman competitor Elliot Hulse, who is also  the co-creator of the Lean Hybrid Muscle System (which is on sale for 50% off until tomorrow, by the way).

Check out this killer post by Elliot below…

If you’re like me, you probably want nothing more than to feel like a ’super-stud’ every time you take your shirt off in public. You want to have the confidence to say, ‘Boy, this sweaty shirt is chaffin’ me’, then reach over your shoulder and tear your shirt off like Brad Pitt in Fight Club. When you know that your pecs look like two soup bowls inserted beneath your skin, and your abs are as hard the asphalt you stand on, it’s tough to keep your shirt on!

Today you are gonna learn the top 5 training principles that you MUST implement in order to make your physique and performance goals… a reality. But, before I open the info-floodgates, there is something you’ve got to understand. Men… all men, should recognize that we are athletes and our training programs must reflect this.

Even if you’re a ‘pencil pusher’ or a ‘white collar crook’, the essence of your being is athletic. In order to see any type of fitness results it is essential to recognize that Squats, Power Cleans, 40 Yard Dashes and Vertical Jumps are not only for NFL Combine participants… they are for you!

1. You’re An Athlete By Design

The foundation principle of everything that I teach all begins with one extremely powerful phrase: “We are primal beings living in a modern world”

Our physical bodies have been unchanged for thousands of years. In fact, today, our bodies are an exact expression of what our ancestors were over 100,000 years ago. It is believed that it takes about 100,000 years for 0.001percent of a genome to change… so yourself and Primal Man are for all intents and purposes… the same.

What has changed is how WE have chosen to live, if you can even call it that. As we have ‘advanced’ in technology we have regressed in physical strength and stature.

We function at a much lower capacity than were inherently capable of. This is analogous to those people who buy off-road vehicles that will never see anything but concrete! You’ve been given the ultimate athletic tool… use it.

2. Short, Hard and Intense Workouts Yield Lean, Hard and Muscular Bodies

When you spend over an hour in the gym sitting on useless ‘fitness machines’ while you’re waiting to do your ‘next set’…your nervous system’s primal response is to release Cortisol and Glucocorticoids – which are stress hormones, (these make you sick, sad, fat and, stupid) in response to your body thinking… “Holy Cow, we’ve been training for over an hour… perhaps we’re being chased by a tiger and need to preserve body fat”, then it begins sacrificing muscle tissue for energy! This is called The Catabolic Effect. Also, workouts exceeding 1 hour have been shown to be associated with a rapid decrease in androgen levels.

This is why marathon runners look so emaciated… id much rather look like one of those Lock, Stock & Ready Sprinters with muscles rippling across their backs and abs.

3. Aerobics and Cardio Training Is Boring & Ineffective

You’ve seen the chunky aerobics instructors;  they do cardio all day long… don’t you think that they would be a bit leaner? Well, there is a scientific reason as to why they are chubby even though they bounce up and down on those colorful blocks all day long. In fact research has shown that aerobic instructors who taught an average of 3 hours a day maintained a body fat of 22-24% – mind you, that Olympic athletes hover around 9%.

Especially with repetitive exercises like aerobics the body adapts quickly to the stimulus and ceases to respond to the stimulus. Also, you begin to become very fuel-efficient… Listen, think of a metabolism that has adapted to long treks of cardio as being a Honda… it burns very little fuel (i.e. fat) but can go miles and miles. Think of a metabolism that is roaring with increased mitochondria activity (as is present in someone who weight trains with circuits) as a Hummer, large fuel combusting metabolism!

Here’s why this is so important! You want a stronger heart, without the fat saving response of long boring cardio treks. That is why I teach my clients how to do work capacity sets. We take 4-6 exercises and complete them back to back with no rest and aim to complete them all with in about 2 minutes… if your heart is not ready to pound out of your chest after that, then maybe you should visit your veterinarian!

Here’s a simple circuit that you can do at home – first 20 squats, then 20 lunges, then ’step ups’ on a bench 10 each leg, finally do 10 squat jumps and get it all done in less than 90 seconds! Kick-ass workout!

We begin every session with Plyometrics and then get right into 3-5 “work capacity” sets for upper and lower body.

4. Get High on Oxygen & Sunshine

Besides the fact that training on treadmills and ’sit down’ exercise equipment is less effective than getting your feet on the ground and learning how to use your own bodyweight, training indoors can be detrimental to your performance and fitness results.

As ‘primal beings’ we are in need of several vital elements and forms of energy. The suns rays are nourishing to your mind as well as body. It is well documented that those who live in the cooler northern climates that enjoy less sunshine through out the year are several times more likely to suffer from depression.

Also, if you’re like most Americans you work and live indoors (maybe). In fact, the average person spends 90% of their time indoors. Several health experts have propounded that our homes and workplace are the most toxic environments in our lives. Many studies have stated that toxic particles and fumes found in your home and workplace include: air fresheners, spray starch, paints, mothballs and even ‘new car’ smell kills more people every year than automobile accidents!

So, what do you do? Train in the great outdoors! When I train my Strength Camp clients at Vinoy Park in St. Petersburg Florida, not only do we benefit from the sweet bay breeze but also the scenery is beautiful enough to give a nun spring fever!

5. It’s Gotta Be Fun!

Drop out rates for exercise programs are almost as high as the drop out rate in my old middle school! The bottom line is, if you don’t enjoy it – you wont do it. The most effective way to ensure that you stick with your training program is to change it often. This doesn’t mean hop from one modality to the next before you get any results. It means stick with your weight-training program for a minimum of 90 days but change the exercises you use for each body part every few weeks.

This not only keeps you interested but also, your nervous system will be challenged with the new exercises and be forced to adapt. This yields fast and long-lasting results!

To learn more about Elliot and take advantage of the 50% off sale on Lean Hybrid Muscle before it ends on 3/11/2010, click HERE now.

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Training Songs

March 1, 2010

la coka nostra by brian morris Training SongsIf you’ve read this blog long enough you may know by now that, next to training, music is my biggest obsession in life. I go to dozens of concerts and live performances per year and could single handedly keep iTunes in business. Here’s a list of some of the newer stuff we’ve been rocking in the gym over the last few months. Some of it is recent and some of it is just stuff that I have recently gotten into or have had renewed love affair with as of late. I’ll try not to repeat any recommendations I have made in the past.

Pearl Jam- There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t listen to some Pearl Jam. They are my all time favorite band by a mile (Public Enemy is second, for those keeping score). I’ve seen them over 50 times live and will see them at least another 50-100 more times. The two best training tracks off the new record are Got Some and Gonna See My Friend.

La Coka Nostra- This is the original three members of House of Pain along with a couple other lesser known friends of theirs. As far as hip hop training music goes, this is the best thing out there right now. I believe it’s also the best thing Everlast has ever done in his entire career, and I have followed him since his time in Ice T’s Rhyme Syndicate. There hasn’t been anything in hip hop close to this in the last five years. Almost every song on A Brand You Can Trust is gym worthy.

La Coka Nostra member Ill Bill has a few tracks featuring the rest of the crew that are worth getting as well: This is War, War is My Destiny, Pain Gang, It’s a Beautiful Thing.

Also check out Problemz and Get Outta My Way by Slaine. Both tracks also feature other members of the crew and are great for the gym.

Viking Skull- Hard rock/metal without being silly hardcore and unbearable for most human ears. There are a few good songs but my favorite is Start A War.

Obie Trice- I’ve been a big fan of Obie for years now. Recently I downloaded Welcome, Got Hungry, On & On, I Am. All good stuff.

50 Cent- Death to My Enemies, Crime Wave, I Get Money, I’ll Whip Ya Head Boy (featuring M.O.P. & Young Buck)

Eminem- I love Em as much as anyone but I truly feel that he wastes his talent on silly subject matter a lot of the time. He’s at his best when he’s angry and rapping with purpose. Having said that Elevators is a decent warm up track. I’m hoping for big things on his next record.

EPMD- Pioneers of old school hip hop and one my top five all time favorites. They recently came out with some new stuff which is gym worthy. Putten Work In (featuring Raekwon), Actin Up, What You Talkin (featuring Mobb Deep)

Rakim- Another leader of the old school. How to Emcee is a good warm up or cool down song.

KRS ONE & Buckshot- Yet another old school legend returns. Some of the best tracks are Survival Skills, Robot

The Black Keys- They recently did a hip hop album which is pretty damn good. They play, other guys rap. Dollaz & Sense featuring Pharaoh Monch & RZA is the best track to train to.

Rass Kass- Burn This Bitch Down

The Roots- Here I Come, Get Busy (featuring Dice Raw & Peedi Peedi)

Young Buck- Do It Myself

Royce da 5’9”- Royce is an underrated but incredibly talented MC who knows how to make some good training music. I recommend Gun Harmonizing, Dinner Time (featuring Bust Rhymes), Duck Down, Death Day, No Way to Stop Me, Count For Nothing, Scary Movies (featuring Eminem), Nuttin to Do (featuring Eminem)

Slaughterhouse- Fight Klub, Onslaught 2, Yeah

Wu-Tang Clan- Kill Too Hard

Raekwon- House of Flying Daggers

Dropkick Murphys- Loyal to No One, The Warriors Code, Shipping Up To Boston, The State of Massachusetts, Flannigans Ball

Beastie Boys (featuring Nas)- Too May Rappers

Jedi Mind Tricks- Animal Rap, Tibetan Black Magicians, Heavy Metal Kings, Butcher Knife Bloodbath

Army of the Pharaohs- Battle Cry, Feast of the Wolves

2Pac- Hit ‘Em Up, The Realist Killaz (featuring 50 Cent), Troublesome ’96, Ghost, Against All Odds, Untouchable

DMX- I wasn’t a huge fan back in the day but over the last year I have come to embrace DMX in the gym. Outside of the gym I would find most of this to be intolerable. For training I like: Don’t You Ever, Fuckin with D, Comin For Ya, Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood, Intro, Stop Being Greedy, One More Road to Cross, Get it on the Floor, X Gon Give it to Ya, We Go Hard (featuring Cam’ron)

Marilyn Manson- Definitely one of my favorites in the gym. My latest download of his is Arma-Goddamn-Motherfuckin-Geddon. Not as good as classics like The Fight Song, Better of Two Evils, Mob Scene or Little Horn, but not bad.

Static X- Another long time gym favorite. Besides the old classics we have recently been rocking Terra Fied, I’m The One, Z28, Hypure, Lunatic, The Only

Rollins Band- Nothing new here, but I have grown a bit tired of screaming satanic death metal lately (must be that “getting older” thing). I still like it but just can’t take as much of it as I used to. As a result I have found a renewed passion for stuff like the Rollins Band. Some of my favorite cuts are: What’s the Matter Man, Tearing, I See Through, Gone Inside The Zero, On My Way to The Cage, Low Self Opinion, Are You Ready, Do It, You Didn’t Need,

Black Flag (see above)- Six Pack, Life of Pain, Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie, My War,

Orange 9M- When You Lie

For heavy squat or deadlift days I still like to crank up some of the following stuff for 20-30 minutes. After that I need to take it down a notch as my eardrums can’t tolerate more than a half hour of it…

Slayer
Killswitch Engage
Chimaira
Underoath
Five Finger Death Punch
Slipknot
In Flames
Deftones
Superjoint Ritual

If anyone’s interested I’ll list all the stuff I listen to outside of the gym sometime later this week, as it’s nearly 180 degrees opposite of this stuff.

Please leave your comments below and add your recent favorite training music.

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Renegade Inner Circle is Live!

February 23, 2010

The new Renegade Inner Circle, private membership site is up and live. We are running a special promotion until this Friday at midnight (EST). The normal one year membership rate is reduced from $147 all the way down to $97. That means you get an entire years worth of workouts and consulting from me for less than a third of my hourly training rate! Or, you can choose the monthly membership rate of just $19.95. Either one is an unbeatable deal.

For more information on what you get and to become a member right now click HERE.

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