NFL Picks for Week 4 and Fitness News

Week four of the NFL season is upon us! Let’s see what I have in store this week:

Already Played: Washington: 38; New York: 31- As you can see, I failed with this pick right here. Kirk Cousins had a rough outing, which at this point in his career, is a rarity. For Eli, it’s a rarity to see him rush for a touchdown.

Baltimore over Carolina: 24-17- Carolina struggled at home last week. It appears that their lack of talent on offense maybe catching up with them. This one may be even lower scoring here, with two very talented defenses taking the field.

NFL Rivalry of the Week: Chicago over Green Bay: 27-19- The Packers may very well be on their last chance at the division already, barring a complete meltdown by both Chicago and Detroit. If they lose here, then they sit at 0-2 in NFC North play. Not a good hole to be in.

Houston over Buffalo: 20-17- Houston has to take advantage of this situation. Buffalo is not as good as their record but Houston has the edge in talent, and the home crowd.

Indianapolis over Tennessee: 23-14- Just in, Charlie Whitehurst will get the gig in Tennessee. Like Houston, the Colts have to take advantage of this situation against the Titans. If they do that, they stand at 2-0 in the division. The problem? They’re already 0-2 against playoff teams.

Detroit over New York Jets: 21-16- The Lions Matt Stafford should have a field day here. Detroit’s offense hasn’t looked like what it should be, so look for a closer game. The Jets can score at any time but the offense is very inconsistent at times.

NFL Snoozer of the Week: Oakland over Miami: 13-9- Wow. Fans in London may see a touchdown scored in this one. Two teams with very laughable talent on the offensive side.

Pittsburgh over Tampa Bay: 31-10- The Steelers look to take their momentum in an upset win over Carolina over a struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers team. Shouldn’t be too hard.

Lock of the Week: San Diego over Jacksonville: 42-13- Blake Bortles era begins. Can he get a win this week? Not until he has more talent around him. He’s playing in real time now.

Atlanta over Minnesota: 20-19- Teddy Time begins in Minnesota. Can he hold it close? Recent history tells us that the Falcons might just be that very talented team to get upset this week, as their play on the road is meager.

Philadelphia over San Francisco: 34-21- The 49ers are struggling while the Eagles remain hot. Nick Foles and co. may not have much of a problem here.

NFC Game of the Week: Dallas over New Orleans: 34-28- The Cowboys and Saints have a little bit of animosity these days fueled by none other than Rob Ryan. In the end, the Cowboys put up just enough to upset the Saints.

AFC Game of the Week: New England over Kansas City: 21-13- The Patriots offense isn’t that hot this year but the defense is. That’s going to be big in this game.

Byes of the Week:

Seahawks- Still the number one team in the NFL according to most. I disagree (see below)

Bengals- The Bengals may be the only team in the NFL to have zero struggles on either side of the ball. Number one team.

Browns- Brian Hoyer has made it through three weeks as the starter. Don’t blame him for their 1-2 start.

Cardinals- My prediction in the pre-season was taking the NFC West. Through four weeks, they lead it.

Broncos- Still couldn’t beat the Seahawks. Maybe they just played a Super Bowl XLIX preview? Maybe one more shot.

Rams- The defense has to play up to their potential. If they do, they’re back in it.

Fitness news: Workouts

Cardio Sprint Workout:

Sprint workout coming up at six. I’ll call this upcoming workout The Go-To, since it’s becoming my recurring workout:

One Mile Run
10 Hill Sprints (jog back down the hill for rest)
10 20 yard Lunges
10 Ladder Sprints (going at least ten yards further with each set, jog back)
One Mile Run

Shoulder Centuries:

X amount of handstand push-ups (I’m on a wall, okay)
100 shoulder presses per arm
100 front plate raises
100 upright rows
100 shrugs per side (I rarely do these, but I’m in the mood)

Zero Cardio, 800 Reps, Fast As Possible:

100 Push-ups
100 Decline Push-ups
100 Two Point Rows per arm
100 Total Weighted Lunges (Weight on one side, this hits the obliques too)
100 Bicep Curls per arm
100 Suspended Dips
100 Upright Rows
100 Full Sit-ups plus about 20 straight minutes of ab work

By the way, use as little rest as possible, and get this done as fast as possible.

I sit two weeks out from the NPC Natural Pennsylvania. Time to take the carbs down just a little for these last two weeks, just a little. Still have a lot to do to get ready these days. Time to crush these final weeks.

My Next Event: Halloween Havoc! Nope, it’s not a show, it’s just Todd wanting to look good at Halloween. I’m dressing up as a Virant Knight, so I’ll def be posting some pics of that. Ordered yesterday, can’t wait to wear it.

Shoot Time: Hoping to get that last shoot of the year confirmed. If so, it’ll be around contest time too. Another event I can’t wait to get going with.

Hunt For October: In addition to the NFL and fitness, I love MLB. Prediction time, although my Rays (yes, the Rays) are missing out for the first time in a while:

Wildcard NL: Pittsburgh over San Francisco- Is anyone peaking at the right time more than the Pirates?

Wildcard AL: Kansas City over Oakland- The Royals? Yep, with the A’s faltering down the stretch, giving way to the Angels, it’s the Royals who get in.

ALCS: Los Angeles Angels over Baltimore Orioles- Hate to say it, but the O’s get eliminated here. LA is a big market but I’m a small market type. The Angels are just too good here. Hottest team in the AL.

NLCS: Los Angeles Dodgers over St. Louis Cardinals- The City of Angels reps the entire MLB in 2014. 2014 belongs to Los Angeles.

World Series: Angels over Dodgers. The Angels are just way too hot to be stopped. If one team can keep it up for one more month, one team that wants it, it’s the Los Angeles Angels. For the first time since 2002, Los Angeles gets a World Series, and it’s the “other” Los Angeles team that takes it.

Week 3 NFL Picks and Nifty Workouts

Brought to you by the King of Shredz:

First things first, guys, I have to take care of business. Week Three in the NFL is upon us, being played by great players who have yet to be tried or convicted for child abuse, murder, bounties, domestic violence, substance abuse, or just merely violating personal conduct. Remember the movie ‘Playmakers?’ It was a television show televised by ESPN about a decade ago that basically went over all of the problems that went on in the NFL, in a fictional league of course. There’s a reason why the show was pulled after about one season, and I’ll leave it at that.

The good news is that there are some very classy and talented NFL players who actually appreciate their opportunities. So, without further ado, here are my picks for the week:

Already Played: Atlanta over Tampa Bay: 35-7. This game was a snoozer. It was actually 56-0, Atlanta’s favor before T.J. Yates entered the game. That pretty much tells you that Tampa’s defense is overrated and Josh McCown is a backup.

AFC Game of the Week: San Diego over Buffalo: 27-24- Two weeks ago I would never have guessed that the Buffalo Bills would be in the conversation for anything except due to the fact that they gave Cleveland their first round pick. Now, they are being given a shot at 3-0. I’m still not sold on them yet.

Cincinnati over Tennessee: 28-10- If Jake Locker can be the Jake Locker of Week One and not the one we saw last week, then the Titans may just have a chance here. Why will this not happen? Because the Bengals have one of the best defensive units in the NFL. They’re just too good.

Cleveland over Baltimore: 16-9- I honestly thought Brian Hoyer would be on the bench by now, but he’s done a good enough job to keep Cleveland In contention for the AFC North. As for the Ravens, they’re on the road. The Ravens don’t play well on the road.

Green Bay over Detroit: 31-28- Here’s a shootout…..potentially. The Lions have to score more than a touchdown to beat Green Bay. They just aren’t good enough……..they’re playing the same old Packers and they’re the same old Lions.

Indianapolis over Jacksonville: 20-15- The 0-2 Colts vs. the 0-2 Jaguars. It sounds like a snoozer, but the Colts played against two of the top three teams in the NFL, and lost by a combined total of ten points. Just a tough schedule. Now, it’s smooth sailing. Why isn’t this higher than 20 points? The Colts like to play to the level of their competition.

Lock of the Week: New England over Oakland: 38-6- The Patriots are one of the best in the league at virtually everything. The Raiders are one of the worst at virtually everything. Not a good combo.

New Orleans over Minnesota: 34-17- Maybe the Saints can finally win a game without blowing it. If they can’t beat Minnesota in the Super Dome, then they aren’t beating anyone. That being said, Rob Ryan has to go if this happens. He’s the worst defensive coordinator of all time.

Houston over New York Giants: 28-17- Houston is the luckiest team in the NFL. No offensive talent, or old talent, and they still put up a lot of points, and allow very few. Why? Look at what they’ve played so far. Now they play the Giants and a washed up Eli Manning.

NFC Game of the Week: Philadelphia over Washington: 44-38- Like offense? Here’s one for all of us. Two 2012 draft picks going head to head. Kirk Cousins……yes, Kirk Cousins, vs. Nick Foles. Two high powered offenses, one shootout. If the Redskins put thirty plus points up again, they may as well trade RG3 to the Rams……that’s ironic.

Snoozer of the Week: Dallas over St. Louis: 21-16- I’m not one to bash America’s Team but I also am a fair person and the Cowboys still aren’t on my watch yet as a contender. But, Tony Romo is still way better than Austin Davis. Heck, half of Dallas’s fanbase probably has never even heard of Austin Davis. Who is Austin Davis?

Upset of the Week: Arizona over San Francisco: 23-21- No matter who plays quarterback, the Cardinals are not only the second best team in the conference, they have the second best coach in the NFL in Bruce Arians. He can make something out of nothing.

Miami over Kansas City: 17-16- Close game, but the Chiefs are 2-8 since their 9-0 start last season. Different coach, different quarterback, same sorry-ass Chiefs. But, you have to mention the Dolphins in the same breath. End of the day, the Chiefs always, always, always wear down.

Revenge of the Week: Denver over Seattle: 30-13- Call me crazy? Have you ever seen a vengeful Peyton Manning play in an NFL game? The results speak for themselves.

Carolina over Pittsburgh: 20-13- The Steelers are in danger of falling to 1-2. Remember when the Steelers were one of the NFL’s elite? Remember when the Panthers were a laughingstock? I only hope no Pittsburgh fan will wake up from a four year coma, because they’re in for a rude awakening……..literally.

Chicago over New York Jets: 31-24- Jay Cutler looked like an all-pro last week. Geno Smith is still in his second season and is still mistake prone. Not a good combo.

Nifty Workouts: So, I had a few good ones this week. Let me begin with my One Hundred Rep Nightmare:

100 reps of everything, as many sets as it takes. Rest time is how many reps you have remaining in seconds.

Decline Push-ups

Dumbbell Rows

Lunges

Crunches

Upright Rows

Suspended Dips

Plate Curls

Try it.

Also, before isolating any muscle group, try these before you workout:

Chest: 100 dumbbell fly

Back: 100 pull-ups

Triceps: 100 suspended dips

Biceps: 100 dumbbell curl

Legs: 100 lunges

Shoulders: 100 lateral raise

Abs: 100 full crunches

Before you workout the target muscle group, shock those muscles early.

Give me a weekly shoulder, ab, and cardio attack:

1,000 jump ropes for warm-up
10 minute non-stop ab work

4 sets of each and every movement, 8-12 reps unless specified.
Dumbbell Clean to Press
super-set: Inverted Barbell Presses

Dumbbell Lateral Raise
tri-set: Dumbbell Front Raise
tri-set: Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly

Battling Ropes for 50 reps
tri-set: Rope Face Pull
tri-set: Machine Rear Delt Fly

I’m out! Todd ‘King of Shredz’ Matthews.

Sunday Chest Day with Other News

Finally! Tomorrow is Week 2 of NFL Sunday! I have a chest workout and some training principles to follow for the ensuing workout. Before that I want to touch up on some more fitness news and I’ll give the rundown of my Week 2 NFL picks.

Chest is my weakest body part by far. This means that I like to take chest a little bit further than my other muscle groups. I don’t train my other groups any less, I just train them as hard as I can and then train chest harder. Though it is a weak point, I do have a very good mind-muscle connection with chest. This means that I can really control my chest muscles during my workout. My stronger shoulders and triceps like to compensate, but this compensation is getting lesser and lesser, especially if I can get my chest through a thorough warm-up. When this happens, my chest workouts are epic.

I like to train chest on days where many of the other mass population won’t, which means any day but Monday, as long as I can help it. I do this so I don’t need to compromise my chest workouts around others. I’d rather put my chest through what I plan to. My favorite days to work the muscle are on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. I’ll choose two days a week.

Chest Workout and my Train Insane Principles:

A) Train with the utmost intensity and tenacity possible
B) Train to motivate others and bring positive energy into the gym
C) Hit the target muscle group from all angles
D) Train to failure for the final 2-3 sets
E) Yell Ronnie Coleman training quotes during workout

These principles will provide the best workout possible. Onto tomorrow’s workout:

3 sets/12 reps at each level
1) Push-up ladder- Get on smith machine, do 12 incline push-ups, raise the bar up one rung, repeat, and do this for five total levels.

4 sets/X amount of reps
2) Wide Grip Suspended Bodyweight Dips
super-set: Bodyweight Fly

4 sets/8-12 reps in a pre-exhausted state
3) Incline Barbell Presses
super-set: Incline Fly

4 sets/15-20 reps
4) Cable Crossover
super-set: Cable Iron Crosses

The Burnout
5) Medicine Ball Push-up Burnout for 4 sets

Week 2 Picks:

Already played: Baltimore over Pittsburgh- I picked the Ravens to win a closer one, but it looked like a bit of a blowout. On the plus side, Antonio Brown gave me ten fantasy points!

AFC Game of the Week: Miami over Buffalo: 28-13- This may be the biggest darkhorse ever for Game of the Week, but it is. And the Dolphins take this one and hopefully finish what they started last year.

NFC Game of the Week: Detroit over Carolina: 28-17- These teams feature arguably a top five offense against a top five defense. They may even rank in the top three in their categories. The only problem is that Cam Newton has only one weapon while Matthew Stafford has at least five. Six if you count his left tackle.

Inter-conference Game of the Week: Cincinnati over Atlanta: 38-35- Offense, offense, offense. These teams feature air raid offenses, and multiple playmakers. If you like shootouts, take a look at it.

New Orleans over Cleveland: 31-20- The Saints offense is way superior to the Browns offense. Brian Hoyer won’t hang with Drew Brees. The Saints are way too good.

Lock of the Week: New England over Minnesota: 30-10- The Vikings were dealt a huge blow that might rival the Ray Rice saga. With a dark cloud floating over them, the young Vikes will be no match for a Tom Brady that lives to prove others wrong.

ex- Rivalry of the Week: Arizona over New York: 20-7- The Cardinals have a solid offense and a solid defense. Solid teams tend to have quiet, but solid results. The Giants are very, very weak on offense. For you kids who have no idea what I’m talking about, the NFL had the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC East until the 2002 season. Oh, and for a fun fact, the 2013 Super Bowl contenders, Seattle and Denver, were division rivals at one time. The Seahawks played in the AFC West from 1977-2001. They are also the only team to switch conferences twice, playing in the NFC in 1976.

Tennessee over Dallas: 27-21: Tony Romo was showing a lot of rust last week while the Titans took it to the Chiefs. As a whole, the Titan offense should dismantle the Cowboy defense.

Jacksonville over Washington: 24-13- The Jaguars have a weak offense, a weak defense, and a weak team. But they’re a team that’s loaded with potential. Slowly, they will be the one team that will strengthen. Slowly but surely. A momentum booster against a very weak Redskins team will be a good start.

Seattle over San Diego: 33-17- The Seahawks have a gem in the fourth member of the “Legion of Boom,” Byron Maxwell, who picked off a pass against Green Bay and batted down four. Richard Sherman will get some work. In the end, the Seahawks continue their pursuit for two in a row with a win.

Snoozer of the Week: Tampa Bay over St. Louis: 17-3- It’s tough that you’re already on the second week of the season and already down to the third string quarterback. Two of the leagues worst offenses go head to head. Someone should win this one.

Denver over Kansas City: 41-14- The Chiefs are going to continue their crash back to Earth this week. This is a team that can’t seem to get The Comeback II out of their minds. Who should Andy Reid talk to right now? Buddy Ryan, Warren Moon, Haywood Jefferies, the entire 1993 Houston Oilers. For you young guys who don’t know who I’m talking about, look at the iconic structure next to where the current Houston Football Club plays. That was where Houston’s true team played. Not just that, the Denver Broncos offense and defense are just elite.

Green Bay over New York Jets: 35-27- The Packers offense will get going against a weak Jets secondary. Geno Smith looked good last week but he’ll be outdueled by one of the league’s best.

Houston over Oakland: 16-13- Houston is in luck with an easy early schedule. This may help them carry momentum as the season heads closer to October. But the Raiders have a hot hand at quarterback for a change, but he’s young.

San Francisco over Chicago: 27-17- The Bears defense cannot stop anyone right now and Jay Cutler is one of the worst in the league on the road.

Young Quarterback Duel of the Week: Philadelphia over Indianapolis: 38-37- We have a shootout on our hands, but the Colts defense isn’t capable of stopping anyone without Robert Mathis. Nick Foles has a new number one in Jeremy Maclin and a decent defense to hold the Colts just enough.

More Useful Information and Saturday Workouts

Today I’m going to go over the social networking aspect of my fledgling empire. I do put a lot of good, useful stuff on this blog, including advice on fitness, nutrition, lifestyle, motivation, and pictures. However, there is much, much more that I have to offer you all in your journey to the top of the fitness realm. I use facebook and instagram as key outlets in addition to my personal page here. Here are my pages:

Instagram: toddmatthewsfitness. Follow me here and gain some awesome access to even more pictures, motivational quotes, short clips, and even more progress pictures.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/toddmatthewsphysique?ref=hl . Follow the link posted for full workouts, workout tips, nutrition tips, lifestyle practices, and look at some secret workouts that only few of us know. I’ll be using my facebook page to post videos of exercises that not too many individuals know how to do by merely looking at the name of the exercise. Also, I’ll have videos of my personal style of training too, as well as some really cool nutrition videos coming up soon. So far, I have posted my latest shoulder workout onto the site. Feel free to scan my page and take a look at it. 

As always, I like posting my workouts onto the page as well. But, I do copy many of my main workouts onto this page. Getting my grind on early this morning, I did a really fast cardio workout, ten solid minutes of abs, and then the remainder of my workout was a chest workout. Here is what I did

Chest Workout:

5 Minutes on stair stepper, as fast as possible, climbing as many steps as possible.

10 minute abs

3 giant sets/25 reps: Push-up, Wide Grip Push-up, Close Grip Push-up, Reverse Push-up, Wide Grip Incline Push-up
4 sets/8-12 reps: Cable Crossover/Incline Barbell Bench Presses
4 sets/ X reps: Suspended Push-ups on Dip Machine/Incline Fly
4 sets/15-20 reps: Weighted Wide Grip Suspended Dips/Decline Crossovers

This workout typically takes between an hour and an hour and fifteen minutes to complete. 

In a few hours time, I’ll get my cardio on. My right knee has been experiencing some issues over the last nine days but after two days of taking a really strong dose of glucosamine, the knee is ready for another test run. Here is what I plan to do:

One mile run for a warm-up

Circuit: 20 yard lunge, 40 yard sprint, jog down hill, sprint up hill. Repeat as many times as possible in a 20 minute time limit.

Circuit: 1/4 mile run as fast as possible, 50 mountain climbers, run another 1/4 mile except that this time the 1/4 mile is down the hill and back up the hill. Return to first exercise in this circuit.

10 minutes of abs in a giant set. 

Total time should not exceed one hour. 

These workouts are not for the weak hearted. Go ahead and modify them if need be, but the full workout requires a lot of clean calories, a decent warm-up, and your favorite music, which is usually a deciding factor that keeps people going. So go ahead, give it a whirl, and tell me what you think. 

Boulder Shoulder Workout and ETC

I have a challenge for all of you. See if you can survive me. See if you can keep up with me. See if you can beat me at my own game. All you have to do is the following: Two workouts a day, every day, eat zero cheat meals (I like to cycle my carbs and calories, it works, trust me), and repeat this for a consistent period of time. If you can remain consistent with my style, then it’s all good, because you just scored a new lifestyle. What? You say you don’t have time for a two-a-day. Then get up forty-five minutes earlier, it’s all you’ll probably need. Forty-five minutes is usually all I need to get in a killer workout. Then you may ask, “why don’t you just go an hour and a half to two hours in one session” My answer to that question is just that I don’t see two straight hours doing one workout feasible for anyone. Why would I wear myself down the first hour only to struggle through the second hour

All I need is forty-five minutes to an hour, and that’s it. My philosophy is to get in, get it in, and get out, get on with your day. Two hours in one workout is going to lead to a two and a half to three hour gym session. Why? Most people like to talk to their buddies when they workout. I usually workout with one workout partner, or alone. Lately, I’ve been going at it alone because it’s tough to mesh a schedule together.  And since 2014 has been my greatest year ever, only my main workout partner can workout with me. If I’m working out alone, I guess God becomes my workout partner, or perhaps my workout leader. But here’s the score, my workout buddy and I rarely talk during the workout, because we both have lives and we both have things to do. Want a list? Here:

Other things to do:

Keep house clean or get kicked out

School work (we’re both in school)

Work….don’t give me that we both work as trainers nonsense. Spend a day in my shoes and see how fun it is to train clients from 5:00am to 8:00pm with a few gaps during the day, but it’s no one way straight eight hour shift. You cater to your clients.

Pay numerous bills: school, phone, car, car insurance, rent (yeah, I get charged to live at home, thank God my dad’s tough on me)

Maintain my social networking, such as this wordpress, facebook, and instagram. I gain new followers everyday and I’m no longer a fledgling in this fitness community.

Practice my poses for both shows and shoots, I have both coming up in just over a month……Happy October.

Okay, so we both have lives way outside the fitness realm of things. So what if I don’t have a brat or two to spend my hard earned money on? I’m twenty-three and I’m fortunate to have never made THAT mistake in my life. Man, I hope I didn’t jinx myself!

Anyway, onto phase two of this lovely article. I like to work hard, work fast, and get it in. Currently, I’m experiencing some chronic knee issues, so my philosophy on cardio is getting reinforced through this too. “Lift weights really fast,” as one notable gym member puts it. That’s my philosophy, just go, fast, with each and every lift. From arm workouts to shoulder workouts to chest workouts. I like to literally fly through my workout, taking few breaks, under thirty seconds for the majority of the time, unless I need to take a water break, but I usually have some right beside me. 

Today I’m sharing my boulder shoulder workout from today. I went through roughly 36 sets of fast moving, fast paced shoulder exercises. This isn’t counting my cardio starter, which was a sledge hammer and tractor tire until I was completely winded, and a plank style ab workout, which rocked.

Four sets of every single movement shown here. For reps, just go heavy and go until you can’t get another rep, go to complete failure. What I mean by this is to go until you cannot move that weight another inch!

Tri-set: Arnold Press/Standing Barbell Press/Standing Dumbbell Clean into Press

Super-set: Lateral Raise/Front Barbell Raise

Super-set: Rope Face Pull/Seated Machine Rear Delt Fly

Super-set: Battle Ropes (50 reps as fast as possible)/Front Plate Steering Wheel Twist

 

Boulder Shoulder Workout and ETC

I have a challenge for all of you. See if you can survive me. See if you can keep up with me. See if you can beat me at my own game. All you have to do is the following: Two workouts a day, every day, eat zero cheat meals (I like to cycle my carbs and calories, it works, trust me), and repeat this for a consistent period of time. If you can remain consistent with my style, then it’s all good, because you just scored a new lifestyle. What? You say you don’t have time for a two-a-day. Then get up forty-five minutes earlier, it’s all you’ll probably need. Forty-five minutes is usually all I need to get in a killer workout. Then you may ask, “why don’t you just go an hour and a half to two hours in one session” My answer to that question is just that I don’t see two straight hours doing one workout feasible for anyone. Why would I wear myself down the first hour only to struggle through the second hour

All I need is forty-five minutes to an hour, and that’s it. My philosophy is to get in, get it in, and get out, get on with your day. Two hours in one workout is going to lead to a two and a half to three hour gym session. Why? Most people like to talk to their buddies when they workout. I usually workout with one workout partner, or alone. Lately, I’ve been going at it alone because it’s tough to mesh a schedule together.  And since 2014 has been my greatest year ever, only my main workout partner can workout with me. If I’m working out alone, I guess God becomes my workout partner, or perhaps my workout leader. But here’s the score, my workout buddy and I rarely talk during the workout, because we both have lives and we both have things to do. Want a list? Here:

Other things to do:

Keep house clean or get kicked out

School work (we’re both in school)

Work….don’t give me that we both work as trainers nonsense. Spend a day in my shoes and see how fun it is to train clients from 5:00am to 8:00pm with a few gaps during the day, but it’s no one way straight eight hour shift. You cater to your clients.

Pay numerous bills: school, phone, car, car insurance, rent (yeah, I get charged to live at home, thank God my dad’s tough on me)

Maintain my social networking, such as this wordpress, facebook, and instagram. I gain new followers everyday and I’m no longer a fledgling in this fitness community.

Practice my poses for both shows and shoots, I have both coming up in just over a month……Happy October.

Okay, so we both have lives way outside the fitness realm of things. So what if I don’t have a brat or two to spend my hard earned money on? I’m twenty-three and I’m fortunate to have never made THAT mistake in my life. Man, I hope I didn’t jinx myself!

Anyway, onto phase two of this lovely article. I like to work hard, work fast, and get it in. Currently, I’m experiencing some chronic knee issues, so my philosophy on cardio is getting reinforced through this too. “Lift weights really fast,” as one notable gym member puts it. That’s my philosophy, just go, fast, with each and every lift. From arm workouts to shoulder workouts to chest workouts. I like to literally fly through my workout, taking few breaks, under thirty seconds for the majority of the time, unless I need to take a water break, but I usually have some right beside me. 

Today I’m sharing my boulder shoulder workout from today. I went through roughly 36 sets of fast moving, fast paced shoulder exercises. This isn’t counting my cardio starter, which was a sledge hammer and tractor tire until I was completely winded, and a plank style ab workout, which rocked.

Four sets of every single movement shown here. For reps, just go heavy and go until you can’t get another rep, go to complete failure. What I mean by this is to go until you cannot move that weight another inch!

Tri-set: Arnold Press/Standing Barbell Press/Standing Dumbbell Clean into Press

Super-set: Lateral Raise/Front Barbell Raise

Super-set: Rope Face Pull/Seated Machine Rear Delt Fly

Super-set: Battle Ropes (50 reps as fast as possible)/Front Plate Steering Wheel Twist

 

The Most Killer Home Gym Routine Yet

I hope you all have read and liked my recent writings on my dumbbell and kettlebell workouts, designed for the busiest of the busiest. Those with maybe thirty minutes a day to get into a gym (or their basement) to bust out an effective workout want to take a look at these posts, because they are designed especially for the busy population.

Some of us just never get a break. We wake up before the sun, not with it, and we’re at work as the sun is coming up. We may or may not have the greatest opportunities to eat solid meals on a consistent basis (look into meal replacement shakes or the Quest product line). And then the obligations at home take over once the work day is over.

All in all, life can be a roller coaster for many of us and as a trainer I’ve seen many individuals give up on their fitness goals because they claim life gets in the way. They may work twelve hour days, have a family at the house, or have many other obligations on top of all of that. The truth is that by giving thirty minutes of the day directly to a daily workout isn’t as complicated as it looks. Get the workout in first thing in the morning, directly after work, or before going to sleep at night, which is my favorite time to get my main workout in.

But, there are times when my schedule is ultra booked for the day, I got to be here, then there, then across the county for something, then maybe my workout time gets cut a little short because I’m waking up two hours before the sun the next morning. In these hectic situations, I keep my workout, even my main workout, short. Sometimes, I don’t even use the gym and I’ll do this very workout I’m about to write up in my basement.

Workout A:
4 circuits/25 reps each. 30 minute time limit if time is limited.

Push-up with Snap Jump
Plate Curls
Bench Dips
Jump Lunge (25/leg)
Touchdown Squats
Front Plate Raise
Squat Press
Diamond Push-ups
Up-Downs
Mountain Climbers (25/leg)

Workout B: 30 for beginners, 60 for intermediates, 100 for advanced in as many sets as it takes. Cannot do next movement until 100 reps are performed for the first movement. 30 minute time limit if time is limited.
Spiderman Push-up
Band or Dumbbell Curl
Suspended Bench Dips (use a flat bench, coffee table, bathtub, etc and place a chair a couple feet from the bench)
Jump Squats
Tactical Lunge (50/leg, use a dumbbell or kettle bell, do a reverse lunge with weight in one hand, switch to other hand under the legs, like a basketball player does)
Band or Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Leg Raise
Band or Dumbbell Rows
Lateral Mountain Climbers (100/leg)
Snap Jump

Kettle Bell 101

When it comes to kettlebells, the movements may become complex, but this is one workout that can be done in the gym or in the home. The reason is that only one kettlebell is needed for a solid workout. Sure, a few more kettlebells would be ideal, but with the mixture of musclebuilding and endurance training, kettlebell training can be done with only one weight for a killer workout. 

 

Workout One: Upper Body/Cardio

Swings/Bicep Curl/Upright Row/One Armed Shoulder Press/Swings/One Armed Floor Presses/One Armed Row/Thrusters (squat to shoulder press)

Do the workout in a circuit, moving directly from one exercise to the next. 

Correspond the rep range with the weight being used. Ten reps for heavier weights and fifteen to twenty reps for lighter weights. 

Do this workout for at least three rounds. If time permits or in order to reach a certain time frame, do more rounds.

Use both hands for each movement unless otherwise stated. 

 

Workout Two: Lower Body/Cardio

Goblet Squats/Tactical Lunge/Swings/Straight Legged Dead Lift (use only one hand if weight is too light)/Lateral Lunge/Swings/Bulgarian Split Squats with kettlebell at side/Single Leg Dead Lifts with kettlebell at side/Swings

Do this workout in a circuit and try to get in at least three circuits, taking breaks when needed.

For this workout, attempt to perform between fifteen and twenty reps for each movement.

 

Workout Three: Abs/Cardio

Side Bends/Thrusters/Back Bends/One Arm Swings/Weighted Crunches/Weighted Step-ups with kettlebell at side/Seated Russian Twists (for more of a challenge, try to make kettlebell touch floor at end of each rep/Figure Eights

Do at least three circuits and attempt to get even more if time permits or if going for a certain time limit.

Try to get fifteen to beyond twenty reps if possible for each movement. 

Workout for the Week of June 15th, 2014

Big workout I did this past week was an accelerated cardio chest workout. This workout took only about forty eight intense minutes of my time and it rocked me. I went home, passed out, and woke up the next day to get ready for work. The concept of this workout was nonstop time under tension, so even during my rest periods I was still working. This is what I did: 

7 minutes per set of movements. Do as many sets as possible in seven minutes. 

Flat bench presses
Knee tucks

Alternate Incline Press 
Cable Crossover 
Box Jump 

Incline Fly 
Seated Incline Press 
Rope Crunch
Forward Box Runs 

TRX Push-up
Cable Iron Crosses 
Battle Ropes 
Leg Raises on Bench 

Incline Close Grip Dumbbell Presses 
Pec Deck Fly
Push-ups as fast as possible for 30 reps
Run in place for 30 seconds 

TRX Bodyweight Fly
Wide Grip Dips
Lateral Step Ups
Lateral Box Run for 30 seconds

The reps were between ten and fifteen unless otherwise noted. As you can notice, I didn’t put an amount of sets down. This is because the amount of sets during the workout varies due to how fast one can complete the workload shown. I was able to do about fifty sets. It was tough, but the key here is to keep moving, the only true rest coming in when walking to another machine to complete the next set in the set of movements. 

Spartan 300 in the “Wreck” Room

Alright, so it’s a Sunday morning and you are all sleeping in. No one is at the gym, so I assume that you aren’t one of those people unless you love waking up before the sun rises to get a workout in only to take the rest of the day off. One of the reasons why your workout at home monitor likes to skip the gym is because he likes to see what he can accomplish in a workout with little equipment. Keep in mind, that I like home workouts four to five days per week, on a cardio basis or on an after-burn basis.

Sure, being at the gym will build a complete afterburn workout, but if you just aren’t up to traveling to the gym or are unable to, or just simply lack access to any gym not named Planet Fitness, then the following workout is for you. Now, keep in mind, this workout is quick, but it’s not for the faint hearted. It’s a high intensity interval style workout that includes after-burn training. We know by now that these types of training will allow the body to continue to burn calories long after time under tension has stopped, sometimes as long as seventy-two hours, according to Alloy’s personal training website. 

One of the after-burn workouts that Alloy loves to come up with are Spartan 300 style workouts, but keep in mind, they have a gym at their disposal. My job today was to modify an Alloy inspired 300 workout for the average individual. Here is what I came up with:

Workout:

50 push-ups

50 single arm push-ups per side

50 mountain climbers per leg

25 sit-outs

50 skaters per leg

50 swings per arm

25 sit-outs

300 jump ropes

Finisher:

50 plate bicep curls

50 bench dips

This workout should take no longer than thirty minutes to complete. If it takes longer, then you are going way too slow. This is an after-burn style workout that one can incorporate into their cardio training as opposed to steady state cardio. Results will be found faster with this style because the strain being put onto the body will allow it to burn calories long afterward. Treadmills and ellipticals are okay, but they won’t burn any more calories the moment one steps off. The workload just isn’t enough unless one is constantly changing the speeds.