Well, it’s that time of year again; time for my annual Holiday Fitness Gift List.
“Aaaaah… Hey! If any of you are looking for any last minute gift ideas for me, I have one…”
Actually I have 13.
This year I picked out 13 killer gifts that any fitness enthusiast or member of the Renegade Nation would be thrilled to receive.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Climbing Rope– If you want to train Renegade Style you have to have a climbing rope. I honestly can’t think of too many more effective exercises than rope climbing. Your grip/forearms, lats and abs will all get smoked from climbing rope. Not to mention the fact that climbing a rope with no legs is just a pretty cool, badass thing to do.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Pull Up Revolution– I’m a huge fan of bodyweight training as most of you know by now. By using the Pull Up Revolution you’ll be able to more effectively work up to advanced levels of pull ups, muscle ups and other pushup variations.
What separates this from simply using bands is that you can easily and automatically adjust the tension from one set to the next just by lengthening or shortening the strap. So you don’t need a bunch of different bands with you at all times.
Also, the belt it comes with allows anyone to work up to divebomber pushups or many other advanced variations they normally wouldn’t be able to do.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Injinji Socks– Vibram Five Fingers are the best training shoes on the market. But wearing them barefoot can lead to some stank ass shoes. That’s why you need to cop at least a three pack of Injinji toe socks. It makes the Vibrams more comfortable and eliminates the nasty smell. On a side note be sure to order these in black. The only thing almost as funny looking as white sneakers is white socks. Word.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Legend Fitness Partner Glute Ham Rais
e– The glute ham raise is one of the best hamstring movements there is. And, as you probably know, stronger hamstrings lead to bigger squats, faster running times and higher jumps. Unfortunately, most people don’t have access to a good glute ham raise bench. Legend Fitness has brought an end to that problem with their very affordable Partner Glute Ham Raise. It’s small enough to keep in a closet and can be used anywhere. For the price they’re charging I think it’s definitely a worthwhile investment. Tell Carlene I sent ya.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Kitrics Digital Nutrition Scale– Although weighing and measuring your food can be a pain in the ass, it’s unfortunately necessary for many people. Especially those who want to make dramatic physical transformations and get down to single digit bodyfat. This nutrition scale makes life a lot easier and does it all for you.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Medicine Ball– You thought you were too old to find a ball waiting for you under the tree? Think again. Medicine balls are invaluable for developing explosive power, training the abs in a functional manner and can be used as resistance on things like back raises, wall squats, etc.
I consider a medicine ball to be an essential piece of gym equipment and think everyone should have one. Just like everyone should own a copy of It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. But that’s a whole other story for another time.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Rogue Do Win Squat Shoes– While the Vibrams are the best shoes to do 99.9% of all exercises in there is one time when I prefer a different shoe. That one time is when you are doing “the king of all exercises,” the barbell back squat.
Most people can not break, or even hit parallel, while maintaining a neutral spine. I have found that slipping a pair of these Do Win’s on solves the problem almost instantly for a large majority of people. If it doesn’t solve it completely, it definitely improves it noticeably. I will be doing a full review on these in the future and answering many questions that you will probably have, but trust, me- these are the shoes you want to squat in. In fact, I won’t allow most people, other than females with incredible mobility to squat without them anymore.
________________________________________________________________________________________
1 Year Membership to the Renegade Inner Circle– With our heavily discounted one year membership you get complete access to me on a daily basis to ask questions, post your own training videos and have me critique your form, post training logs, interact with hundreds of other like minded members, with similar goals. Plus, when you become part of our Renegade family you also get 12 full months worth of workouts from me for only a fraction of the normal price. And if you’re really good I call to read you a bed time story every night.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Battling Ropes– Some people have gotten a little bit carried away with the battling ropes over the last year or so. They’re not a tool for developing strength or power but they are great to use for 5-10 minutes at the end of your workout as a finisher. The nice thing is there is absolutely no impact and no stress on your joints whatsoever. If, however, you start using them in between sets of squats and militarys in some silly “metcon” circuit I will send David “Boomer” Wells to your gym to pelt you with rotten tomatoes until he throws his arm out and requires rotator cuff surgery. You have been warned.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver with Heart Rate Monitor– To be completely honest I haven’t tried this myself. But I know a few people that I trust who do have one and they love it. As I’ve said in the past I only believe in sprinting or walking. Running is not part of the Renegade Lifestyle. Unless its trail running and you’re breaking up sprints, with moderate paced runs and walks intermittently. Running endless miles on concrete just for the hell of it, on the other hand, is asinine. That being said, it’s good to have a heart rate monitor for your walks so you know that you’re in the right range. As for the GPS part, I guess that could help as well if you’re as bad with directions as I am.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Trigger Wheel Muscle Therapy Device– If you’ve been training as long as I have you’re sure to have some aches and pains and have probably accumulated your fair of scar tissue. Like Clark Griswold said, “It’s all part of the experience.” Using the Trigger Wheel regularly is a great way to break it up and help yourself recover faster from workouts.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
US Wellness Meats– A nice box of grass fed organic steaks would make a perfect holiday gift for any coworker, colleague or friend. While conventional, factory farmed meat might be a cheaper option it is also poison. Friends don’t let friends eat non organic meat. In order to keep your holidays free of excess estrogen levels, dangerous drugs and hormones and a piss poor fatty acid profile, stick with grass fed organic meat from US Wellness Meats.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Chalk- I know, I know, chalk sounds like a really boring gift to give someone. But if you train at home in your garage or basement or outside in the park it’s absolutely an essential part of your arsenal. Hell, since most public gyms don’t have chalk it’s equally as important for those who train there. They won’t often allow it but you’ll have to sneak it in a tupperware container and try to be neat. Remember it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than beg for permission.
Training without chalk not only sucks but is dangerous in my opinion. There’s no way you’d want to be lifting heavy weights or doing risky, advanced bodyweight moves and have your grip slip. That’s just an accident waiting to happen. So chalk is an absolute must.
Delight the meathead on your list with a box of white powder under the tree.
Happy Holidays.
If you need me I’ll be upstairs.
Asleep.
