Today's Workout

Hey Everyone

From now on I will be posting my workouts. This is so you guys can have an idea of what I am doing and make sure I'm not slacking! I'm also notoriously bad at recording my own training so this should help nicely. Each month I will also outline my goals fot the month and some of my ideas for why I am doing the exercises I am doing. It always helps to understand the rationale behind a training system because quite often, there is no rational at all!

At the moment I am focusing on gymnastics style training. I personally believe bodyweight training is the best form of training and gymnasts are the perfect example of the physical potential of the human body. My current goal for this month is to familiarize myself with the basic moves and improve my single leg conditioning with pistol squats. Throughout the year I will be aiming to improve my current PB's some of which are:

Back Squat: 180kg
Front Squat: 130kg
Dead Lift: 160kg
Dip: BW + 50kg
Chin Up: BW + 25kg
One Arm Push Up: BW + 40kg
Pistol Squat: BW + 45kg
Barbell Push Press: 85kg

I like this list as it shows a good balance of bodyweight skills, a balance between pushing and pulling exercises and some great leg exercises. What it does reveal to me however is that I need to get stronger in the posterior chain. My front squat should be around 153kg to match my back squat and show strength balance in the legs and torso. I also need to improve my pull up and rowing strength to match my pushing strength and help improve shoulder stability. You will also notice their is no bench press on the list. For the record, I do not perform bench presses as a maximal lift. I much prefer Dumbbell Presses as they are healthier for most peoples shoulders.

Todays program focused on bodyweight leg exercises with some supplemental isometric gymnastic holds and some front squats and step ups. The front squats and step ups were performed with a fairly easy weight (60kgs) with the focus on honing the technique and getting better depth. I truly believe you can never refine your technique enough on certain lifts and every improvement you make will eventually lead to more weight on the bar and better performance.

Exercises
A1. L Pistol Squat - 5 reps x 5 sets
A2. Back Lever Support Hang - 5 sets of 15 second holds
A3. Handstands - Held for max tim

B1. Glute Ham Raise - 5 reps x 5 sets 60 secs rest

C1. Front Squat 5 x 5 60 kgs
C2. Bench Step Up 5 x 5 60kgs

I began the workout with foam rolling and a series of dynamic mobility drills and will stretch tonight.

Soon I will write about my health goal for February and how I am planning to achieve it.

Until next time

Paul