It's GOTTA BE the Program

I would feel dishonest, unfair, and untrue if I just showed exercise after crazy exercise to you. Just throwing a bunch of exercises together with some reps and sets really doesn't make a program. Sure, you might get results for a little while just by providing a good effort. Don't worry though it won't be long till the progress plateaus and little aches and pains arise.

Yea, I sound like the glass half empty guy right? Well, maybe it is because I am so tired of people online throwing out random workout. Hey, I like variety and to tell you the truth rarely follow a very set routine. However, I do like to look at a training week and plan some goals.

Ask any successful coach that has actually made long-term progress with clients and they will tell you the same thing, planning is key. How might you make a week of training?

I personally think most people can not handle more than four days of intense training. So, here is how a week may look:

Day 1: Priority of volume with intensity. Options: Density or Ladders

This can be followed by some assistance work done in a circuit style, I personally like intervals for this part of the routine.

Day 2: Power Circuit Training. This is an opportunity for people to work in patterns of motion that they typically don't get with strict strength work. Rotational movements, different lunging patterns, crawling, are all great options within this training session. Typically this is higher repetition work but a more moderate intensity.

Day 3: Strength Focus. Why so late in the week? Generally most people need a significant time building tendon and ligament strength as well as fix muscle imbalances before they place too much emphasis on heavy lifting. Ignoring this rule usually leads to some nasty pain or injury. Lots of interesting ways to develop strength with sandbags though.

Waves: Perform a series of reps in compound movements like clean and press: 1/2/3/3/2/1 the first series is lighter than the second series building upwards.

Clusters: Perform one set with approximately 10 seconds in between till all the "mini-sets" are done. For example, Zercher squats of 5 mini-sets of 2 with 90 seconds of rest after. You can repeat this two to three more rounds.

Day 4: Pure Intervals. This time will help speed up the recovery of the strength focus routine because it will have much lighter loads. The idea is to work up to eventually 60 seconds of work but you can start as low as 15 seconds.

Above is a video of what a Day 1 might look like!

Serious Strength Training

I admit it! I was definitely one of those coaches that believed to have a real, serious, focused training facility I had to have all the usual suspects. Primarily squat racks, bumpers, Olympic bars, etc. C'mon, isn't that what a strength coach should have in his/her facility?

However, if I had to do it over again, I would have!!! While my philosophy of training has not changed how to address it has. If you asked me how to build really solid strength seven years ago I would have said heavy deadlifts, squats, and presses. Now, I would have a completely different perspective. There seems to be so many more options since tools such as sandbags, suspension training, and kettlebells have become available tools.

Now I look at a strength program and not only do I see new opportunities to create strength programs that not only help the weight on the bar, but keep movement abilities as a top priority as well. Too many times when people try to lift more they sacrifice both their athleticism and health. Sure, people can increase the amount they can lift on the bar, but how do you feel? Banged up? Tight? Stiff? I was that person too!

But wait?! How do you get stronger when the weights of sandbags, kettlebells, and suspension units can't come close to what you can put on a bar? Ah, there are numerous ways....

1. Take your same type of movements and change the leverage. For example, start with bear hug squats, move to zercher squats, then shoulder squats. By changing the leverage you change the weight your body feels and can make a lighter weight feel much heavier!

2. Change the speed of movement. Once the tempo of a repetition was really specific. While we have gotten away from that, you can still manipulate a repetition by decreasing how fast you lower a weight, where you add pauses, how fast you try to lift the weight.

3. Alter stability of the exercise. Instead of lifting from a very stable base, try changing the base of support. When you press overhead go from different positions such as a lunge. Rather than just performing a power clean, work on a staggered stance power clean.

Rather than just talking about all the ways, here is a strength workout I performed recently with the same training tools we are talking about.

Out Run the Police?

This week I got a very cool email from one of the most respected people in the fitness and bodybuilding industry, Will Brink. I laughed to myself as one of the first books I ever owned was a Will Brink book!

Well, I was incredibly excited to hear that Will was working with SWAT teams in the Northeast. Even more exciting was that he told me that they were using our Ultimate Sandbag quite a bit as part of their training.

Such news gets me pumped because with all the "warrior" training talk that gets thrown around our military, police, fire, and other emergency groups are the real warriors. Getting fit or healthy is great, but to train when your life REALLY does depend upon it is a whole different thing.

Check out some of the great videos Will sent me of their training!

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I'm So Proud of Her

Yesterday was a pretty big day! My wife, Jessica, flipped our 200 pound tire ten times. Normally I wouldn't be so excited, but Jessica is an unusual case. You see Jessica has suffered 5 disc herniations in her back and as long as I have known her has had bad back pain.

She isn't new to exercise either, she has been a physical therapist for quite some time so if anyone knew how to deal with such injuries it was her! However, treating other people and treating yourself can be two very different things.

After hearing about her back problems for some time and really wanting to help I couldn't wait till Jessica gave me an opportunity to share what I knew about bad backs to help her. After all, anyone that has had a bad back knows that having the pain come back is the worst feeling.

Eventually I did gain her trust though and we started with very basic movements. We had to teach her how to activate her hamstrings and glutes. She had to learn how to pivot at her hips and not her low back. Teaching how to lift with the legs and stabilize the low back was no easy task either.

To be honest, we would have some set backs, but she did notice herself becoming stronger and stronger and more stabile. That is why after a year of working on her instabilities, muscle imbalances, and movement patterns she could lift the 200 pound tire quite easily and with no pain.

I write this not just because I am incredibly proud of the work she has put into her rehab, but also because people write me all the time asking what do I REALLY DO? for my training. To be very honest it is the many times the same programs that you see me write about all the time. In fact, in the new INFERNO! DVD some of the workouts and many of the exercises are the same ones that I used with Jessica at different stages in her comeback.

Pre-sale lasts a few more days. Pick-up YOUR copy with a special surprise inside.

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New Workouts for the New Year

Starting to accomplish those 2010 goals means putting them into motion as soon as possible. The past week I began showing you 50 unique upper body exercises, such drills besides being amazingly effective make training fun again.

Being motivated and consistent often means having new challenges, this new year of 2010 has already started off with a bang with new training tools to compliment our Ultimate Sandbag to bring you dynamic training routines.

Nothing feels better than regaining athleticism or actually ACHIEVING your training goals. Using workouts like the one above brings fun new challenges and excitement to training. It is a great way to start off the new year! Wait, tomorrow will be one more new big release!!!

More Challenging Upper Body Exercises

My challenge continues with another 10 upper body exercises. Now we are up to 20 awesome sandbag training drills. What do I like about these exercises so much? They allow us to train in ways that are just not possible with other fitness tools.

You will see the overhead press with cable attachment is something brand new. We are able to apply force in multiple directions providing a very unique feel of an old drill. Most people don't think of overhead pressing as a great upper back drill, but combining good pressing techniques with the additional load of the cable makes the upper back fire much more. This acts as both a great range of motion enhancement of the shoulder and muscle balance.

Other drills like the three point row integrates the whole body. The traditional row is enhanced with multiple pulling directions emphasizing various areas of the body depending upon the placement of the sandbag.

As you can see many drills can make your workouts brand new and help blast through some training plateaus! Wait till you see the remaining 30 exercises!

Taking Workouts to the Extreme

Innovation is often a result of addressing a specific need. That is how I view everything we do at Sandbag Fitness Systems. From the creation of our Ultimate Sandbag to our newest creations, everything is done to make what I want as a coach possible.

Years ago I was introduced to a unique idea by Strength Coach, John Davies. Coach Davies spoke about strength training with a weight vest on the body. Not just your traditional bodyweight drills, but lifting as well. It was amazing the result this had not only your strength, but conditioning as well.

For me this has become increasingly more important. Old basketball injuries to my feet have really taken their toll where running is definitely out of the question. Yet, I have found this "loaded conditioning" to be an excellent way to still get a tremendous cardiovascular effect.

That is why I am excited to launch the presale of our Ultimate Sandpack! Our Ultimate Sandpack was developed to counter all the short comings that I have often found with standard weight vests.

1. Weight vests always seemed to flop around when doing explosive drills or running. This often caused them to be tremendously uncomfortable and limiting. Our Ultimate Sandpack was designed to conform to the body limiting the bouncing and annoying aspects of standard weight vests. Therefore, you can jump, perform calisthenics, and even jump rope with our Ultimate Sandpack.

2. Weight vests can be hard to adjust and work with an array of people and sizes. We have designed these Ultimate Sandpacks and have found them fit perfectly for everyone from 5'5 to 6'5! That is a wide array of people!

3. Having different weight limits can be very expensive! Our Ultimate Sandpack was designed to work with our 15 pound fillers so you can go as little as 5 pounds and up to 45 pounds in a single sandpack!

4. Many weight vests cut into the shoulder and hurt the back, but our Ultimate Sandpack was made with comfort straps not to dig into the body and yet give a tight fit. Women and men use the Ultimate Sandpack very comfortably.

The Ultimate Sandpack has become one of my favorite tools because old basketball injuries have made it hard to run and my current oral issues can make my arms weak. So, the Ultimate Sandpack gives me an alternative to having to run, in fact, one of my favorite activities has become walking my dogs with the pack. On days my hands hurt and are throbbing, I can load more by using the sandpack and take some stress off the parts of my body that hurt. This and the new exercises that are now created make the Ultimate Sandpack a standard in our training programs!

Pre-order the Ultimate Sandpack: Retail-$169.99, Pre-order-$139.99

FREE Workout, Holiday Sale

With the holidays growing closer the next few days, I wanted to put out one of our best workout series to help inspire people to keep on their fitness. This quickly turned into one of my favorite training routines.

Train Like a REAL Athlete

Ask ten coaches about training like an athlete and you are likely to get ten different responses. One thing that all the great strength coaches can agree on is that training like an athlete is the manner in which most should train. I know, you don’t compete at anything, but too often when people say they want to “be in shape”, “move better”, or have “better strength and endurance” they truly are telling me they want to be an athlete in life.

The beauty of the Ultimate Sandbag program is that it addresses all the needs of the athlete in way that no other training program can. The unique nature of sandbag training provides an element of that can’t be replicated. That is why we have been a part of elite MMA programs, NFL, Pro Sand Volleyball, top military, and many more programs.

To help show people how different the Ultimate Sandbag truly is I have posted below the Top 8 MMA sandbag movements. The drills shown aren’t only beneficial for MMA athletes, but anyone interested in maximizing their athleticism.

Is the King Dead?

I did it, I did it for years! I always made the squat the cornerstone of all my training programs. Who would blame me? There are hundreds of studies and practical experiences showing just how darn effective squat training actually can be for performance. Yet, that doesn't mean there can't be a better way and our thinking can't evolve.

When I think to my own training I can remember times when squat numbers would improve, yet, performance in sports I would enjoy would not see any improvement. Why did this occur? After really taking a look at my own training and to those that I work with I found some interesting observations.

1. Since the squat form of people can vary so greatly it is impossible to make an overall generalization if squatting is good or harmful for one's goals.

2. We live in an era where injuries, muscle imbalances, movement problems, and other physical issues play a large role in what happens during the squat. I could yell and scream about how awesome they are and how you HAVE to do them, but that isn't always the answer.

3. More important than squat numbers going up is whether or not they are leading people to the bigger picture of their overall goal.

I know for myself squatting was definitely a beneficial exercise, but I really didn't understand what I was missing till I started addressing my own weaknesses. Sports such as basketball and Strongman took a large toll on my body.

From these sports I had more than a few days where my hip would ache, I would have altered walking patterns, shoulder tightness and just didn't feel like I could progress in my training. I made the hard decision to take a break from the traditional back and front squatting and make lunging a priority in my training program.

Most people would say that I was "wussing out", but the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. The worst case from my own experiment? I would not get any better and possibly lose some strength. The result was much different than I expected.

After about six weeks of making lunging a strength focused lift for me I found that my hips felt better and more surprisingly my back squat went up! Why could this happen? A few things came to mind pretty fast.

1. Squatting is an easy exercise for us to think as a superior strength exercise because simply we can often handle more weight. More weight must mean more strength being built, but it is impossible to say that single leg exercises could not do the same at smaller loads. It would appear that lunges stimulate just as many, if not more muscles because of being slightly unstable. Therefore, we can't simply assume more weight equals more strength.

2. It is far more difficult to compensate on the lunge than the squat. The most common compensation is altering stride length to something shorter to remain more balanced. Outside of this pattern, it is darn hard to cheat a lunge. Many lifters know there are more than a few ways to cheat a squat.

3. You hit your weak points! I can't think of too many people that like to do what they are not good at. So many issues can be addressed with lunging, hip mobility, lower leg stability, and hip and leg strength. These issues can be missed with a lack of focus and time spent on single leg exercises. However, what I like so much about lunging is the dynamic stretch to one of the most problematic areas of the body, the hip flexors.

I also began to be in favor of using suspension training to enhance the training effect of lunges. The beauty of suspended lunges is that you can alter and progress range of motion and stability depending upon the version of the movement you use. Today I wanted to share some very important variations of suspended lunging that we use to take people's training to a new level.

The most difficult part? Being comfortable with not judging the success of the lift by how much weight you lift, rather by the results you obtain.

Beyond Abdominal Training

A lot of people have taken such a great interest in the story of my low back injury, I wanted to talk about really what has made a difference. 80% of Americans will experience low back pain some time in their life, and well, mine was a little more than some slight discomfort.

While most people think I am a powerlifter or strongman, the sport I played most of my life was basketball. It was also the sport most impacted by two herniated discs when playing in high school. Not knowing how to strengthen it, it eventually caught up with me playing in college to the point where I lost use of my right leg for a very brief time.

Even when I regained use of my leg, the pain was immense and I struggled with it for a long time. I did physical therapy and I went to corrective exercise certifications and programs. However, understanding what was weak and wrong didn't occur to me when I switched my philosophy completely.

What I learned about myself is that I suffered from some problems that a lot of people suffer from.

1. I really didn't understand how to move correctly. I didn't know how to produce force, absorb force, use mobility in my hips and spine to produce movement.

2. I didn't know how weak my hips were really! Renown strength coach calls this, gluteal amnesia, but I think it goes into hamstrings as well. When I realized how they didn't know how to work together I knew I had a lot of room to improve.

3. I didn't know how to resist force, I could produce power and force, but I didn't understand how to resist it. When I started incorporating drills that addressed these issues I saw my pain go down and performance go way up!

Many people want to know the drills I used to get better. To be honest, they are the exact same ones I have been teaching for the past four years. Now, I have outlined them in a series so YOU can see the progression of movement and learn how to help others or yourself get out of the same pain and frustration I spent several years with!

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Rotational Exercises

Not Just a Kettlebeller

"You can't base a philosophy around an implement"-Alwyn Cosgrove

At first I actually disagreed with Alwyn's statement. There is so much you can do depending upon the implement you are using. It is hard to perform functional based training if all you have is machines. Yet, I then thought about it more and thought about the rise of kettlebells. The more they grow in the maintstream the more poor use and implementation I see. That is when I began to see Alwyn's point. It still all comes down to coaching.

That is why I recently asked Strength Coach, Stefanie Tropea, to sit down with me and go over some of her training programs and coaching. Why did I ask Stefanie? Besides having a very successful training business in Norwalk, CT, Stefanie has began being successful in the sport of strongman. When a coach can balance business success, personal training success, and client success they are someone we can all learn from.

One of the things I learned from Stefanie was simple, yet perfect. Even though Stefanie is a big kettlebell enthusiast she explained to me it wasn't about lifting kettlebells, it was about using kettlebells to learn better movement. That is exactly how I feel about the Ultimate Sandbag, but she put it so much better.

Take time to listen this great interview with Stefanie Tropea where we discuss all things related to strength training!

Listen to Stefanie Tropea Interview

More Than Screaming and Yelling

Unsophisticated, "hardcore", basic, easy, all these are terms I have heard various people use when refer to sandbag training. You see there is a HUGE difference between using a sandbag exercise and using sandbags as a systemized form of training.

I have seen many jump on board the sandbag bandwagon, but that isn't always a good thing. Seeing the random assignment of sandbag exercises to workouts or techniques being anything BUT good, I don't know if these people help or hurt our efforts. A sandbag by itself does not help you training, using a sandbag with great technique and purpose makes a world of difference in one's performance training.

Trust me, when you see the videos of athletes performing crappy sandbag exercises with the mindset of this being "hardcore", or "toughness training" it is anything but!

During the growth of my Sandbag Fitness Systems program I have had the wonderful opportunity to meet many coaches that I normally would have never spoken with. One of these coaches is Vince McConnell of McConnell Training in Fairhope, Alabama. Vince has been a leader in the fitness community for many years. So, I was really excited when he showed interest in the sandbag program.

Recently Vince sent me two videos of two VERY different athletes. The first is a high level athlete performing one of my favorite Ultimate Sandbag drills, the one legged goodmorning. As Coach McConnell told me this athlete can typically perform this drill with over double the weight with the bar on two feet. Yet, it is very obvious that this athlete is struggling to do less than half the weight on one leg with the Ultimate Sandbag.

This is a perfect example how good coaching can identify the needs of an athlete rather than just trying to "smoke" an already strong athlete. Now, the performance of the athlete, rather than the training of the athlete gets priority.

The next athlete is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Here is a young man that needs to build a base of training and instead of just "making him sweat", Coach McConnell provides a well balanced training program that hits patterns and muscles that makes this not just a preparation program, but definitely will provide this young man an edge in performance. It needs to be pointed out that this young man is not rushing through rep after rep, rather much more attention is spent with technique and performance. This may seem obvious, but how many times have you fallen for the trap of racing against the workout rather than remembering the objective of training for a specific purpose! Are you training or working out?

New German Volume Training

About ten years ago one of the most popular strength coaches, Charles Poliquin, wrote about a revolutionary muscle building program known as German Volume Training. Coach Poliquin based the program off of the off-season training program of German Olympic Lifters that took the off-season as a time to put on functional muscle mass. The program was relatively simple on paper. Ten sets of ten repetitions with a weight you could do 20 repetitions with. Although simple on paper, this was a brutal training program.

Coach Poliquin had a split of:

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5

Chest & Back Legs & Abs Off Arms & Shoulders Off

This program would definitely put some mass on, but had two main issues.

1. It was great for bodybuilding, but how about those that wanted to have more athletic based training and focused on compound lifts?

2. The recovery from these workouts was brutal and often hard to accomplish.

I had been thinking thought this program could potentially be modified to have some solutions. What I did was create several options that would work for those that were interested in using this style of program with just kettlebells and The Ultimate Sandbag.

1. Still use the 20 repetition weight option as your determination of the correct weight. Alternate sets of kettlebell lifts with the Ultimate Sandbag. For example, if you are alternating Clean and Press and Front Squats perform first series with kettlebells and the second series with the Ultimate Sandbag and Zercher squats.

2. Only perform this GVT once a week and focus on those big lifts that give you the most bang for your buck.

3. Only do 10 sets of 5, where the first 3 sets are with the 20 repetition weight, then move the weight to 15 repetition weight for 3 sets, then four sets of a 10 repetition maximum weight.

I recently used this program with the Ultimate Sandbag rotating the following:

Clean and Press for 5

Shoulder Squat Right for 5

Bent-over Row for 5

Shoulder Squat Left for 5

I used the third option for my program and gave about 60 seconds in between sets. You will find this is perfect for building functional muscle mass, and yep, burning some serious calories! Try it out and send us your results!

Josh Henkin, CSCS

The Armory Challenge

I have gotten a ton of emails from people over the last few military based workouts. It seems people have always been fascintated with the fitness level of those in the military. When people think of being "in shape" they want the endurance and strength that soldiers are able to demonstrate. Yet, even the military has had to update their techniques to keep up with an ever more demanding and challenging world. That is why I was honored to help out our military with a specific program to get their best through the selected process.

The ideas and concepts though that are used in these workouts can be used by anyone. Some of the keys is to "fill in the holes" where most training fails. That is why the TRX and Ultimate Sandbag are so important as they allow us to train ranges of motions and patterns that are impossible with most common implements. Using our "Tough Enough" or this weeks' "Armory" workout can really not only enhance your fitness, but resilency to injury as well.

Check out our Military Sale Special

Take the "Tough Enough" Challenge

So many people wanted to see the types of workouts I created for the Special Forces candidates. Watch the video to not only see a great workout, but why we are using these exercises and tools! Get the secrets to being elite!

Don't forget about our Military Special going on now!!! Click Here

7 New Exercises=1 Killer Workout

It is back to work at Sandbag Fitness Systems, all the family and events are done and we are creating new exciting things for 2010. My first job, leave all the poor imitators in the dust and show you more great and exciting workouts and exercises with the ORIGINAL Ultimate Sandbag.

Today's workout does just that! This isn't just random exercises, but those that all compliment and build different aspects of functional fitness.

1. Shoulder to Shoulder Suspended Lunge Press: Not a circus trick, in fact, this is one of the fastest and easiest ways to increase overhead pressing strength. By destabilizing the body, but still allowing an appreciable load to be lifted, the body increases the stabilizers and nervous system to allow for more muscles and motor units to be used when you attempt a more stable press. This exercise also teaches the important principle of rooting in overhead pressing and creating a strong foundation. The lower leg training hits one of the most commonly missed areas of training that can give you a huge return in performance!

2. Double Sandbag Bent-Over Row: Rowing movements are important for maintaining muscle balance and the bent-over version trains the muscular endurance of the low back. This is one of the most important attributes of back health according to low back expert, Dr. Stuart McGill. I wanted to show there are many ways to increase the load lifted and this one is pretty fun! Stacking a smaller sandbag on top of our advanced sandbag makes this truly a strength lift!

3. X-Shoulder Squat: Again, some may think that they are limited in performing strength work by the load of the Ultimate Sandbag. While many may find our Advanced Ultimate Sandbag or Burly Ultimate Sandbag to be plenty of weight, some want more of a challenge. The X-Shoulder Squat does that by adding load to the hips in the bottom position and giving the additional challenge of grip strength. Coming out of the bottom of the squat you really have to burst out of the hole! Exactly where many lifters feel weakest.

4. Cable Overhead Throws: One of my favorite new drills for many reason. Showing how if you make a sandbag with cheap material (like many of our competitors) or use a homemade version (sorry you couldn't do this lift) you are just missing out! The cable overhead throw trains all the explosive muscles that usually get missed! People spend lots of time throwing downwards but little the extensors that protect the body and can create even more power!!! This drill may be more important than sledgehammer or medicine ball strikes because of it training all the muscles from head to toe of the backside of the body. The stabilizers and powerhouses of the body.

5. Loaded Suspended Push-ups with Mountain Climbers: Working all patterns of motion is an absolute must. Horizontal pushing does just that, but people often don't give push-ups their due. They either fall into the trap of doing mindless reps or progressions are far too crazy to get any type of strength benefit. Being suspended adds one dimension of load and the Ultimate Sandbag does the other. Adding in the mountain climber adds more core work as well as isometric strength in the arms, shoulders, and trunk. Isometric training is another commonly missed attribute of training.

6. Band Twists: Ok, why can't you just do this with a handle? Adding in our Ultimate Sandbag makes this exercise hard to control and emphasizes grip strength and coordination. Why is this so important? It will add stability to the elbow and shoulder, a problem all too many people suffer!

7. Squat Thrust to Shoulder Throws: I wanted a conditioning drill that did more than make you sweat. The squat thrust is a commonly used, but often incorrectly performed drill. Attention must be paid to the placement of the feet on both aspect of the hip thrust as well as spinal alignment. Done properly this does a great deal to enhance flexibility and power. The Shoulder Throw works the core in a unique way in both producing force, stabilizing, and integrating the hips to develop a well rounded core exercise.

You can perform this workout in a circuit for reps or time, take the challenge though and see how you hold up to our Inferno Workouts!

Are They Better Than Kettlebells

That is the trick question that inevitably comes up during any of workshops, "are sandbags better than kettlebells?" I say a trick question because it is often hard to say whether or not another tool is better than another. There may be instances where a certain tool may be a better option than another. However, getting this question over and over again made me think long and hard about it.

I don't believe sandbags to be better because I would have to be able to prove that they produce a superior result to a nonsandbag or kettlebell related activity. Since such research hasn't been done it seems silly to go there.

Yet, sandbags do offer two distinct advantages over kettlebells.

1. Number of Holding Positions: Any kettlebell enthusiast can tell you that the various holding positions of a kettlebell is what allows a lifter to progress or create new exercises. Manipulating the leverage of the kettlebell follows the most basic of principles, overload! The kettlebell offers four holding positions: down by the side, clean or rack, by the horns, or overhead. Varying these positions alters the body's center of gravity challenging both the body's sense of balance and trunk stability.

Well, the sandbag offers eight holding positions; down by the side, bear hug, zercher, clean, shoulder, on the back, overhead, headlock. These additional options allows the lifter or athlete possibly more options for progression and creating challenging movements.

2. Grip training: Kettlebells are often promoted for their ability to develop grip strength. Holding onto a swinging kettlebell can often be a great challenge or doing bottoms up presses can be a great demonstration of grip strength. Yet, sandbags may still have an edge.

Grip expert, John Brookfield, states there are three types of grip strength. Most people only focus on crushing grip strength where swinging heavy kettlebells would come into play. However, there are two others, pinching and wrist. A properly loaded sandbag challenges all three forms of grip training and is a major reason they have been a favorite training tool of wrestlers and martial artists for centuries.

Want to hear the debate continue and see where I might give some more controversial points that may change the way people see kettlebells and sandbags? Come join Senior RKC, Geoff Neupert, and I for a special interview tonight for FREE!!!

Just visit: http://kettlebellinterrogations.com/josh/index.html

Can YOU Keep Up

Accountability, if I had to nail down success to one trait that would be it. Far too often I hear clients tell me, “YOU are going to get me to lose weight”, or “YOU are going to get me faster”, or “YOU are going to take away my back pain”. Right off the bat I have to explain to people that I can’t do anything for them. I can educate them on the best techniques to be used, but ultimately they have to be proactive in their own performance and progress.

The same applies with my Sandbag Fitness Systems program. I can direct and give ideas to people, but ultimately they have to apply the principles to get the reward. People often ask about motivation? I feel if you have accountability you have some level of motivation that should be growing inside. However, a great coach can bring out the best in you even if you are on the right track.

That is the route I took myself when I worked with Cem Eren yesterday. Cem is a coach with amazing enthusiasm and passion and that only makes you want to train harder. Add in his innovations and you have someone that any coach or individual is excited to train with. Cem showed me some of his contagious training ideas and emotion with his Warrior Den workout. Check out this workout, the great thing is that it is based around mixed martial arts, but anyone who performs it would only see a rise in athleticism, fat loss, and awesome strength gains. But who really wants that? See if you can keep up with Cem!!!

The Inner Athlete

I’ll admit it, my last video was less than stellar. I guess sitting in a car for five hours and rushing to shoot one of my favorite complexes wasn’t the best ideas. Yet, I love how much feedback one can get from these advanced movements. I could tell you my hips were tight and some serious work needed to be done on my hips.

After a week to get back into the flow of things I wanted to share some new drills that I have been working on that do more to get your inner athlete in top shape. What is the “inner athlete”? Whether you want to compete as a weekend warrior, play with your kids without being in pain, or being able to do things that make you feel your best without being wiped, everyone is an athlete.

The unfortunate part is so many people still get in a rut, it doesn’t matter whether they are using kettelbells, bodyweight movements, or a combination of a whole bunch of great tools. That is why sandbags have become so important to me, because the versatility is virtually endless.

In this weeks video I have four drills that are powerful whether you are a weekend warrior or an elite athlete, movement is king and these drills can do wonders for your movements.

One-arm Rips

This looks very similar to a single arm shouldering movement, however, it is all predicated off of the rotation of the hip. That rotation causes enough power that the sandbag should almost “float” up to the shoulder. An amazing drill for hip, trunk, and arm power. Believe it or not this is a killer upper body drill as well even though you don’t lift with the arms.

Lateral Step Around the Worlds

Around the Worlds are one of my favorite drills as it builds great power through the hips and trunk while providing mobility to the spine and shoulder girdle. Some people have seen these similar drills with other objects, however, the Ultimate Sandbag is unique because their dimensions work better in more complex versions. To add sophistication to the Around the World drill changing the stance can make the body view this as a whole new drill for stability and strength.

Scoop Rows

I believe bent-over rows get a bad name because they are hard! That isometric strength used by the low back is so important in overall back health. Add in a unique gripping option in placing the arms in a “scoop” position really toasts the upper arms and back in a unique way.

Squat Thrusts to Split Chops

Squat thrusts are nothing new, but people cheat them all the time. Taking the time to perform them right makes them not only a great conditioning drill, but powerful for hip flexibility and power. The split chop is another example how the Ultimate Sandbag just puts other sand tools to shame. Our overhead chops sure got a lot of popularity, but again, we need to think outside the box. Making this a split chop make sure that we can build some single leg power and amazing athleticism for anyone!

Try these drills in a circuit manner, either set some reps or simply use the Gymboss to count off intervals. You will find that you hit muscles you didn’t have and doing any extra “cardio” is not necessary. Best of all you will feel like you are regaining your right to being an athlete and enjoying the most important things in your life!

In Strength,
Josh Henkin

http://SandbagFitnessSystems.com