FREEEEEEEDOM!
Health is Wealth: May 7th - May 15th Schedule
I'm afraid the handle on your recliner chair does not count as an exercise machine
“I’m afraid the handle on your recliner chair does not count as an exercise machine”
Seems to me that up here in the midwest, spring..err Summer is finally here! Time to get back on that mountain bike and shred some dirt! Here's what my workout schedule looks like for the week.
- Monday: Stability Circuit
1. Supine Lateral Ball Roll
2. Back Lunge w/ Knee Drivers (Holding dumb bells)
3. Push Up w/ feet on Stability Ball
4. Single Leg Dead Lifts w/ dumb bells - Row to over head press
5. Side plans with arm leg counter roations
6. Lying Opposite Hand/Leg Crunch
7. Horizontal cable chops - Circular motion - Tuesday: Rest Day/ Yoga
- Wednesday: Strength Circuit
- Thursday: Stability Circuit
- Friday: Rest Day/ Yoga
- Saturday: Ride & Run
- Sunday: Ride & Run
Live Fearless. Not Reckless.
Disclaimer: As Always, I am not a personal trainer. I invest a lot of time in myself figuring out what works for me.
If you have any questions, interested in training or programs, Hit up Master Dee or Lord Kenny.
Cheers Friends!
Week 25 - Explode and Power
I thought Spring was here but then we were dumped on, easily 12+ inches of snow. At least, today, the sun is shining crazy bright and it feels amazing. On to the work outs of the week!
Monday: Power Circuit
Tuesday: Stability Circuit
Wednesday: Power Circuit
Thursday: Rest Day
Friday: Stability Circuit
Saturday: Cardio Day: Run + Power Circuit
Sunday: Cardio Day: Spinning
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Week 24 - Explode and Power
Week 24 - Explode & Power
Good Morning!
I was on a 5 day road trip this last week, so my workouts were limited to body weight and outside. Looking forward to getting back in the gym this afternoon for a long run. This week looks as planned. Lets Get it!
Monday: Stability Circuit
Tuesday: Rest Day (Yoga)
Wednesday: Power Circuit
Thursday: Stability Circuit
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: Power Circuit + Cardio Day
Sunday: Cardio - Spinning
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Week 23 - Cardio Day .... Again
Yoga takes you into the present moment, the only place where life exists.
“Yoga takes you into the present moment, the only place where life exists.”
retty easy day. Walked a mile at 3.5mph and gained almost 500ft in elevation. Ran two and half miles 6mph (10min/mi) pace. Kept the heart rate down and just enough to warm up the body for a good stretch.
rolled out for about 15 minutes. The only stiffness I really felt from yesterdays's cardio day was my inner left quad and my calves. I think my calves are overly tight, something I've over looked and have been working on loosening up. Just gotta keep at it!
Have an awesome weekend 🤘
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Cardio Day
“Any struggle or pain that you experience just gets you to the top, and you can’t get there without making the climb. A few years later, you won’t remember exactly the way the pain felt or how long it took, you’ll just remember the view from the top. In fact, you might smile at the fact you had to work to get there.”
I've really come to love cardio days. Truthfully, I was always told and always told myself when I was younger that I was a sprinter, not a distance guy. I loved wind sprints, plyometrics, running hills, etc etc but I hated going out for a mile jog. I ran hurtles and sprint relays. I cant seem to get enough of the opposite now. Long runs and rides have become so therapeutic to me..
Post HS and into university between working in the service industry and partying I picked up the delicious habit of smoking. It was awful, as everyone knows. I couldn't even tell you why it started. I wasn't playing any sports or involved in any recreational activities so motivation was nowhere to be found. The only thing that kept me from weighing three hundred pounds was working as a valet parking attendant. Young and dumb. Fast forward half a decade and I've quite smoking, quite drinking any alcohol, caffeine, energy drinks and for the most part eat pretty clean. My diet is definitely not perfect, nobody's is but it's always getting better. This all brings me to my next point. How I feel. Cardio day. I love it. You almost don't even know how really shitty you actually feel or what they mean when they say you are what you eat until you know what it feels like to feel so freakin good.
A few life style changes and I've run a marathon with my eyes set on the Moab 200. Health is your wealth, man. Damn!
Today's cardio day. I walked a mile at the incline of 5 at 3.3mph to warm up which I think got me about 250 ft of elevation gain. It was a speed work day, and I was running so I settled on wind sprints. I ran a total of 4 miles between a 6mph at 8mph pace. My intervals were 30-60sec.
Miles 1 and 3, I ran wind sprints. Mile 1 was 30sec intervals (6mph vs 8.5mph). Mile 3 was 60 sec intervals (6mph vs 8.5mph). Mile 2 and 4 was recovery speed jog at 6mph/ )10min/mi pace).
I know a lot of people hate the tread mill, but I absolutely love it. For the most part, I find slower paced edm and focus on breathing.
I followed my run up with 30 minutes of stretching. I rolled out with the roller and softballs and stretched.
You guys Have a Killer Thursday!
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Six Must-do Body Weight Stretches for Road Trippers
I don't see a lot out there on the stretching while driving, so Im going to share a few stretches that allow me to remain loose while on the road.
“Yoga is about clearing away whatever is in us that prevents our living in the most full and whole way. With yoga, we become aware of how and where we are restricted — in body, mind, and heart — and how gradually to open and release these blockages. As these blockages are cleared, our energy is freed. We start to feel more harmonious, more at one with ourselves. Our lives begin to flow — or we begin to flow more in our lives.”
We love road tripping for so many reasons. I'm sure everyone has their own list of reasons. However, the issue we can run into from time to time is the body tightening up from sitting for extended periods of time. Both on the way to our destination or destinations and on our way home after a long trip.
I don't see a lot out there or hear about many talking stretching while road tripping, so Im going to share a few stretches that allow me to remain loose while on the road. I have really come to LOVE yoga so a lot of my stretches have found inspiration at the gym getting ready for a work out or from yoga classes. I love top down flow so I usually start with my neck and shoulders, down through my lats, spine through my lower back, and down through my legs.
Depending on how many Nalgene bottles of branch chains or water I slam while driving usually determines (Squirrel Bladder) how often I am making a rest stop. I stretch every stop I make just to loosen up and move the body a bit. At the very least, I drop down into an ass to grass deep squat using my elbows to push out those knees. Before I start to rant, here are a few of my go-to stretches for road tripping.
1. Neck & Shoulders
Cow Face Arms - See Here.
Thread The Needle - See Here.
2. Lats and Spinal Stretches
Standing Lateral Stretch - See Here.
Side Neck Stretch - See Here.
Cat Cow - See Here.
3. Legs
Body Weight Good Mornings - See Here.
Body Weight Lunges - See Here.
Body Weight squats - See Here.
Forward Folds - See Here.
We have a lot of XC single track here in the Twin Cities. To find more aggressive and fun riding I usually have to drive. Coming from the Twin Cities, the shortest drive I typically make to mountain bike is about two hours which is Spirit Mountain just south of Duluth or the Duluth trails system. Sitting for long periods of time is just the cost of doing business when you're out to adventure, not matter the disciple. So we gotta do what we can to offset the damage from sitting.
While this may be a whole other post entirely, I cannot stress the importance of stretching while on the road and pre-workout. Pre-work out stretching not only warms up the muscles you're about to use, but it also warms up the connective tissue. A rise in body temperature comes from stretching which allows for the greatest range of motion that your joints allow. There is a big difference between pre and post work out stretching and it would do you a world of good to come up with a good dynamic and static stretch flow to keep you on it! Make it part of your routine!!
Mountain Bikers: Check out this Vid..
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Disclaimer: As Always, I am not a personal trainer. I invest a lot of time in myself figuring out what works for me.
If you have any questions, interested in training or programs, Hit up Master Dee or Lord Kenny.
Cheers Friends!
Week 23 - Killer Stability Circuit
If you ain't pissed off for greatness, that just means you're okay with being mediocre.
“If you ain’t pissed off for greatness, that just means you’re okay with being mediocre.”
Had a killer work out today. Coming off an active rest week, I've been read y to hit it hard every day this week. Today was a stability circuit workout.
I started off with a 2mile run at an 8:22/mi pace. My goal while warming up is exactly that, warming up. I stretch dynamically before, during and after my warm up run. I keep my heart rate down in-between 140 and 150. I am 33 so keeping my heart rate under 145-ish keeping me in an aerobic heart rate zone.
From there my circuit consisted of:
Single Leg Reverse Band turns - I do 10/arm per leg. One set is essentially doing 40 band rotations. At my gym, I use the green band.
Lateral Box Jumps - One set is 20. Im not jumping on the box, Im jumping laterally from side to side over the box (36in high).
Saturday Night Fever - 8/arm @ 15lbs.
Single Leg Hip Lift on a Exorcise Ball - These are tough as **** for me. I do 8 per leg.
Band Swimming - I feel like an idiot doing these but I can definitely feel them working. I swim forward slowly for 45 seconds at a moderate pace and then swim backwards for 45 seconds.
Ab Roller - Another one that is tough as ****. I do 10.
Tri Rope Pull Downs into a Chop - I do 10-15 per side at 30-40lbs
Pistol Squats - 8 per leg. Final stop on this stability circuit.
I do 3-5 laps though these circuit work outs. Post circuit, I usually hop on the elliptical or Row machine for about 15 minutes. Post work out I spend 30 to 45 minutes working on the foam roller, mobility ball and stretching.
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Disclaimer: As Always, I am not a personal trainer. I invest a lot of time in myself figuring out what works for me. If you have any questions, interested in training or programs, Hit up Dee or Lord Kenny.
Cheers Friends!
Week 23 - Explode & Power... Back at it
Hi Guys -
It was a great rest week for me. I really only rocked a stability circuit and a couple of low HR cardio days. Back at it this week, here as followed
Monday: Power Circuit (plyometrics)
Tuesday: Stability Circuit
Wednesday: Power Circuit (plyometrics)
Thursday: Cardio - Long run, Low HR (5mi+)
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: Cardio Day - Spinning or Road Ride
Sunday: Cardio Day - Spinning or Road Ride
I was down in Moab, Utah a week ago now and rode the Whole Enchilada. From where I was shuttled to, it was only supposed to be a 20mi ride. Coming off of a week where I hiked 65+ miles in the three days prior, I didn't want to ride anything too long. In any case, I made a wrong turn somewhere down a jeep trail and ended up nine miles down near the canyon floor. It was a dead end of course, so by the time I climbed my way out, I pretty much doubled my ride into a 40 mi ride. Super fun, just didn't have the juice in the legs I really needed. Luckily, didn't feel any cramping until the path ride back to town!
I just wanted to say I really noticed the difference in my riding and over all ability after hitting the gym hard with Dee's MTB training program. Im not a paid advertiser, just wanted to say how awesome it is to notice the difference.
Live Fearless, Not Reckless.
Week 22 - Active Rest Week
Hi Guys!
I am actually on the road at the moment which works out great for an active rest week. On my rest weeks, I keep my cardio to walking, the elliptical and light spinning doing my best to keep my heart rate down. Yoga too, I have come to love Soma Yoga Classes on my rest days.
Soma Yoga:
-A unique and beautiful practice, a SomaYoga includes a series of slow, subtle movements to guide you toward relief for body, mind and spirit.
Each practice includes a combination of:
-Breathing techniques to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system and move the body from a state of stress to a new found relaxed resilience.
-Muscle release, relaxation and balance through the use of somatic movements which focus the brain specifically on the contracted muscles and movement patterns.
-Strength and stability techniques to create more ease in the body and mind.
And onto my active rest week!
Monday: Cardio - 3-5mi run
Tuesday: Stability Circuit
Wednesday: Rest Day
Thursday: Stability Circuit
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: Rest Day
Sunday: Rest Day
I have to admit, rest days are incredibility hard for me. When I wake up, all I want to do is go and go F***** hard! At the beginning of the program, I didn't take any rest days. In fact I ramped up my cardio or added a heavy strength day to off set the circuit training. I am sure you are shaking your head, (especially if Kenny is reading this). I got it, i got it! Rest days are important.
Both Lord Kenny and Dee warned me, and yes I should have listed. In fact, I have been listening! I've been continually getting better at listening to my body and backing off when the body says so. For me, I think the tell tale sign is the achy knees. Knock on wood, most of my injuries have been from colliding with trees on my bikes.
Disclaimer: As Always, I am not a personal trainer. I invest a lot of time in myself figuring out what works for me.
If you have any questions, interested in training or programs, Hit up Master Dee or Lord Kenny.
Cheers Friends!
Week 21 - Explode and Power
Hey Guys - My week is going to go as follows
Monday: Rest Day
Tuesday: Cardio - Interval Training
Wednesday: Stability Circuit
Thursday: Power Circuit
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: Cardio - Long Run (8-12 miles) HR below Anaerobic Threshold
Sunday: Cardio - Intervals and Wind Sprints
Strong Mind, Strong Boy, Strong Life! Get your mind right guys and hit the gym.
Week 20 - Explode and Power
Hi Guys -
I completely spaced on posting yesterday so here it goes!
Monday: Stability Circuit Day
Tuesday: Power Circuit
Wednesday: Rest Day
Thursday: Power Circuit
Friday: Stability Circuit
Saturday: Cardio - HR < 150
60 minute Run
60 Minute Spin
Sunday: Cardio
Wind Sprints - Minute on the Minute Sprints (30-45min)
- 30 seconds @ comfortable jog/ Recovery Pace
- 30 Seconds @ Sprint
Row Machine - 30 Minutes
I just want to say that I have absolutely been in love with this circuit program. I think that this style of workout and programming is great for anyone that loves adventure sports and traveling. A lot of the body weight circuits, you can do anywhere along with your cardio.
I'm not a paid advertiser for MTB Training, I just took a chance on it and have loved it so far. This is my first off season training in this way. So I am super excited to see how my riding goes this summer. I feel into the trap that most people do when hitting the gym. Lifting and exorcising to lose weight and look a certain way. The problem is, there really isn't a motivating factor hitting the gym that way and is easy to make excuses on the days you just don't really feel like going. It is not sustainable. Find a hobby, something you love and then train to live ;)
Disclaimer: As Always, I am not a personal trainer. I invest a lot of time in myself figuring out what works for me. If you have any questions, interested in training or programs, Hit up Dee or Lord Kenny. Cheers!
Week 19 - Explode and Power
Good Afternoon & Happy Sunday -
I believe I figured out how I am going to utilize this space. On Sundays I am going to drop a post with my program for the week. Intermittently, I may write up a post when something inspiring pops up in a workout.
My workouts start with one of three different warm ups.
- Walking Hill Climb - Incline @15, 3.5mph pace. ( with or without weight vest)
- 1 mile run where HR is under 140/150.
- 15min on elliptical where HR is under 140/150
This Week Should be a good one.
- Monday - Stability Circuit
- Tuesday - Power Circuit
- Wednesday - Off Day (Yoga or light mobility work)
- Thursday - Power Circuit
- Friday - Stability Circuit
- Saturday - Cardio
- 30min MinOnMin - (30sec) - 6mph vs 10mph
- 15-30min Rowing
- 15-30min Elliptical or Sprinning
- Sunday - Cardio
- Long Run
- 5+ miles with HR under 150
- Long Spin or Ride
- Long Run
Good Afternoon and Welcome
Hello!
Nick, here again, just another blog section I'd share how I utilize my off season and gym time to train new and upcoming adventures. Feel free to reach out if interested in discussing!
I reached out Dee Tidwell of Enduro MTB Tradining along with the Lord Kenny over at American Strength to get my fitness on! In the past I have always been in the gym to stay in shape and typically to put on size and strength with out much care for cardio.
After a marathon and a few bike races I knew I needed to start training for what I enjoy doing, which meant training smarter, not just harder.
