BREATHING FOR RESULTS… three necessary tips for reducing stiffness and increasing range of motion! Sooo here’s my first crack at getting in front of the camera on the GRAM… it’s a lot harder than I anticipated. It’ll get better… I promise. Anyway, keep reading… If you’re doing a breathing based technique for the purpose of reducing stiffness and improving range of motion (i provide a couple of examples during the video), then you must do these three things to down regulate your nervous system and expand your ribcage in the desired areas to drive necessary gains in range of motion! 1. Breathe in through your nose with your tongue on the roof of your mouth and breathe out through your mouth. This will optimize your ability to get air into and out of your lungs. 2. Breathe gently. You should not be able to audibly hear yourself breathe. Forcing your breath will upregulate your nervous system and trigger a fight or flight response that will negatively impact your ability to relax! 3. Breathe deeply. At the end of your exhale, you should feel your obliques kick on. Think 3-5 seconds in and 3-5 seconds out. Keeping your obliques on is absolutely necessary for diaphragmatic breathing, and true expansion and compression of the ribcage.

CONDITIONING YOUR UPPER BODY WITH THE BALL SLAM TECHNIQUE! If you want to target your upper body during conditioning using a ball slam technique, then elevate the surface that you slam the ball onto with a soft box. 1. Soft boxes are bouncy 2. An elevated surface shortens the distance that the ball has to travel These factors combined will decrease the amount of time between reps and allow fatigue to accumulate in your arms! This will allow you to target many of your upper body muscles for the purpose of increasing local muscular endurance, as opposed to just conditioning for general cardio respiratory function. Switch up your cardio routine and give something like this a try. Your upper body muscles will burn a tonnnn, but you definitely won’t regret it! ;)

You already know how much i love blood flow restriction training. Since it requires nothing more than 10-30% of your max, now is your opportunity to experiment from home using just a few household items (like a backpack) and cheap plastic tourniquets. Perform this routine 2-3 days/ week and i guarantee that you arms will actually grow while in quarantine! NOTE: when you apply the tourniquets, your arms should feel heavy, not sure cold or numb. They might appear slightly discolored, but not purple. While you are exercising, your arms should burn... and a lot more than they normally do during high volume sets. In fact, they should burn inbetween sets while youre resting. Your arms should feel weak. STEP ONE: buy cheap plastic or rubber tourniquets on amazon. You should be able to purchase 5 tourniquets for 10-12 dollars. STEP TWO: perform as many pushups as you can without the tourniquets, and divide that number by 4. So if you performed 40 reps, your new number is 10. STEP THREE: apply the tourniquets and perform as many sets of pushups as you can using your new number (ex: 10) without having to stop in the middle of your set. Rest 30 seconds between sets. STEP FOUR: perform the next three exercises using the following format. During your first set, perform 30 reps. For sets 2-4, perform 15 reps, resting no longer than 30 seconds between sets.

BLOOD FLOW RESTRICTION (BFR) TRAINING How it works: Veins shuttle blood from muscles to the heart, while arteries do the opposite. Veins are more superficial than arteries. With just the right amount of pressure, you can use a tourniquet or a specialized cuff to clamp down on your veins and not your arteries , trapping blood and metabolites in exercising muscles (same amount of blood going into + less blood leaving muscle = more blood in muscle). Following? Well, In order for a muscle to grow, its rate of synthesis must exceed its rate of degradation. Current research suggests that BFR training increases markers of muscle protein synthesis and not degradation, making it a strongggg training method for the stimulation of muscular hypertrophy. LIFTING HEAVY PRODUCES GAINS. WHY NOT JUST DO THAT INSTEAD? Common BFR training protocols utilize loads as light as 20-40% of max, while Traditional training methods require in excess of 65%. Using a much lighter load to achieve a similar effect protects your joints, connective tissues, muscles, etc. from excessive strain, making it a great rehab tool and active rest day or deload alternative... SOLD YET? DO THIS: AMOUNT OF PRESSURE: 40-80% (more is not better) SENSATIONS TO AVOID: numb, tingling, cold. WHERE: upper arms / legs to stimulate your biceps, triceps, quads, and hamstrings FREQUENCY: 1-3 days/ week PARAMETERS: 2-4 exercises/ muscle group; 15-30 reps/ set; 2-5 sets/ exercise; 30 seconds rest between sets

This particular progression will teach you how to flex and extend at the hip joint without over extending or bracing through the low back. A lot of athletic movements, like squatting and jumping, occur bilaterally. Resisting extensive or compensatory lumbar extension while the hip joint flexes and extends is important for optimizing the performance of these movements. Use this progression, in conjunction with others that i have and will post, to string together the ultimate core workout. Progression: 1) Bent knee leg raise - Lift both knees up to your arms and back down to the ground 2) Deadbug heel taps - Lower both of your knees to ground and back up to the dead bug position 3) Deadbug leg extension - Extend both legs (knees) as you lower them to the ground 4) Weighted dead bug leg extension - Add weight to exercise 3

DESTROY YOUR CHEST, TRICEPS, CORE using only a swiss ball! Do not rest between exercises, rest 1 minute between rounds, perform 3 rounds 1) eccentric push ups (4-6 seconds down) - as many reps as you can each round 2) tricep dips - as many reps as you can each round 3) reverse crunches - 20 reps 4) rollout - 10 reps, using the variation that matches your strength level! total your reps per exercise over the course of all three sets, and strive to beat that number the next time you do it!

CASE STUDY - Lateral lower leg pain Ten days ago, Jenn "twisted" her knee at yoga and has been experiencing pain along her lateral leg ever since (along her peroneals and biceps femoris). These just so happen to be muscles that attach to the fibula and are a part of the body’s lateral fascial line. coincidence... nehh! After ruling out a fracture and other potential pathologies, we gave this technique a try... and low and behold, it worked. We combined this technique with “rolling” exercises to loosen up the muscles that pull on the fibula, and plan on taping the fibula so that it isnt excessively yanked on during exercise! If Jenn’s pain persists after some time, then we will readjust her care plan accordingly!

Bet you've never trained your core from this position before. Yeah, its a little bit different... somewhere between supine and a reverse plank. But it is great for targeting your core while maintaining active shoulders. STARTING POSITION: Lay on your back with your elbows directly beneath your shoulders. Drive your forearms through the floor and push your shoulders away from your ears. Pull your shoulder blades down and back and open up your chest. Tighten your abs. From here, follow the progression. 1) Alternating, reciprocal hip flexion- When you lift one, you lower the other. Make sure that the leg that you lower is fully extended and does not touch the ground. When you can perform 15 reps on each side, move on to the progression. 2) Knees to chest- lift both knees to your chest. When you can perform 20 repetitions of this variation, move on to the next exercise in the progression. 3) Leg lift- with your knees fully extended, simultaneously lift both legs as high as you can. When you can perform 20 reps of this variation, move on to the last exercise in the progression. 4) Banded alternating, reciprocal hip flexion- similar to exercise 1, with a band. Once you can perform 15 reps on each side, increase band tension.

PLYOMETRIC PROGRESSION - Hopping If you have done anything even remotely athletic in recent memory, then chances are you have had to coordinate and produce force through either one leg or both in an awkward position. Think basketball, football, soccer, wrestling, spartan racing, obstacle coursing, zombie apocalypsing, crash bandicooting (ya, thats a word).. and the list goes on. If you perform any of these activities with any regularity, then this plyometric series is for you. I do not necessarily care about how high or far you jump... each drill gets a little bit more challenging as you progress from both feet to one, and from the sagittal plane to a combination of planes. Make sure that you do not progress from one drill to the next unless, you can perform the drill that you are on, 1) without losing your balance, 2) with perfect mechanics. GOOD JUMPING/ HOPPING MECHANICS: if you can check off each item in the following list, then you probably have decent mechanics: Feet straight, knees in line with feet, a level pelvis, hinged hips, a coordinated arm swing.

Today’s video details the process of chest activation through shoulder girdle positioning. If you struggle to feel your chest muscles working when you bench press, then today’s video is for you! For year’s i benched through shoulder pain... not realizing that i was just destroying my shoulder complex along the way! If you want to bench press for a long time, then attention to detail matters! Keeping your ribs down by tightening your obliques, TA, and abs, pulling your shoulder blades back by activating your traps, and drawing air in to your stiff thorax to increase your intercostal space is all important for restoring your pecs normal resting length. Over time, learning to use both your diaphragm and intercostals to breathe will serve you well, and make the intricate process of leveraging your movers to perform both safely and effectively a lot easier!

If you have “stiff” ankles and a limited ability to dorsiflex, high arches and an inability to fully pronate, or Tibia’s so externally rotated that they look like God screwed them on incorrectly, then this technique is for you. To fully dorsiflex your ankle, your foot must fully pronate and your tibia must internally rotate. If either of those two things don’t happen when you dorsiflex, then you’ll lack range of motion! This technique promotes both of those accessory motions to improve ankle dorsiflexion range of motion. DO NOT: 1. allow the outside part of your heel lift as you pronate your foot 2. allow your heel to rise as you shift your weight forward towards your toes

There are two types of people in the world - those who fail their deadlift during the lockout and those who do not even break the ground. If you repeatedly fail your deadlift during the lockout, then this video is for you.

HOME EXERCISE ROUTINE - legs and shoulders. Perform 3 rounds, resting only when necessary 1) reverse lunge to press (w/ balance) - 10 reps ea side 2) high pull - 50 reps 3) tall plank w/ rotation - 10 reps (to each side) 4) anti-gravity press w/ lateral walk (stay as low as possible)- 10 reps (each direction)

Want to start tracking your macros and seeing real results? Follow along as I teach you how to register for an account, establish in app macronutrient-based goals, and log food into your daily diary! This video is intended for instructional purposes only. I am not in any way, shape, or form affiliated with myfitnesspal .

ATTENTION ALL PARENTS - tag alllll parents who would benefit from a FREE parent/ child HOME exercise plan. Are you cooped up inside of the house with your energetic children, in need of an outlet for them to play? I gotchu! Do this routine to expend some pent up energy and sleep better at night. Perform 3 rounds of the following, resting 2 minutes after each round, and only when necessary inbetween exercises 1) plank w alternating high five - 20 reps 2) sit ups - 25 reps (or more, if you can hang) 3) oblique twists - 50 reps 4) inchworm w/ high five - 10 reps 5) toe taps - 100 reps

Parents, do you need to tire your energetic child out to either extend nap time (aka quiet time), or to sleep better at night? Then partake in this fun and interactive parent/ child workout, and reap the benefits of regular exercise! Perform 3 rounds of the following: 1) rolling - 10 reps 5 ea direction) 2) crawling (forward and backward) - 10 to 15 feet, 5 times 3) pelvic rotations - 50 reps (25 ea side) FINISHER: alternate back and forth between the following two exercises until you perform a total of 100 reps each 1) backpack curls 2) backpack overhead tricep extension

Kids, you’re still stuck at home bored out of your mind. Parents, you’re still going nuts at home with your overly rambunctious children. The solution? Workout!!! Perform 3 rounds of the following... 1) elbow supported knees to chest- 20 reps 2) quadruped pelvic rotations - 20 reps (10 ea direction) 3) eccentric push ups - 10 reps 4) partner rows - 20 reps

My lovely mother and I are back at it with part 4 of our parent/child workout series. We are upping the entertainment value, bringing more jokes and creative exercise ideas to the table! Enjoy! Perform 3 rounds of the following, resting only when necessary 1) tall plank w rotation (10 reps ea direction) 2) hip thrusts (25 reps) 3) elbow supported leg lifts (10 reps ea direction, over and under) 4) curls/jumping jacks (perform jumping jacks while your partner performs 20 curls. Alternate back and forth until each person has completed 60 curls)

Being able to tilt your pelvis is important. When you bend down to touch your toes, your hip flexes. Once you run out of range of motion at the hip joint, your pelvis must tilt posteriorly so that you can reach down further. If your pelvis cannot tilt posteriorly, then you cannot reach down further and potentially touch your toes because your total range of motion through that entire pattern utilizing both the hip joint and the pelvic tilt is now compromised. The problem is... most people (not all, but most) are stuck in an anterior tilt. So all patterns requiring neutrality and/or a posterior tilt are limited. This progression will teach you how to restore pelvic control so that you can optimize your movement quality. Afterall, you cannot be strong and agile if you do not move well PROGRESSION: 1) stability ball reverse crunch w/ arm reference 2) dead bug "feet to hands" 3) Leg lifts w/ posterior pelvic tilt 4) Hanging toes to bar 5) Hanging knees to elbows

The rollout is a challenging core exercise that I see being performed incorrectly all the time. As a result, i have put together a progression for you to follow to optimize your core’s ability to resist extension while maintaining good form! Here is my rule... if you cannot perform ten repetitions of a variation in a row with perfect technique, then you are not ready to progress! Progression: 1) Knees underneath hips, two arms 2) Knees underneath hips, one arm 3) on knees w/ hips fully extended, two arms 4) From feet, two arms 5) on knees w/ hips fully extended, one arm 6) From feet, one arm...good luck ;) Here are my rules: -Your arms must fully extend at the end of each repetition - your body must remain level throughout the technique, forming one straight line from either your hip, knee, or foot (depending on your starting position) through your fingertips -you must feel the correct muscles working(abs, lats, serratus anterior, arms.. maybe). Compensating through your upper traps, neck, and lower back to stabilize your body through the range of motion is not okay. - if you are stuck inbetween variations, then use a one arm technique to fuel your progress towards the next variation