It’s All About Efficiency Baby!
… weight management … athletic performance … living with intention.
These three things all go hand in hand, they are inseparable. Train like an athlete and you will increase your chances of managing your weight (you don’t see too many overweight athletes walking around, right?) Train with purpose, that is, live and train with specific intent. Athletes need to spend most of their time improving their sport’s skills, so they must be efficient in the weight room, performing the most functionally sound, bang for your buck exercises they can. Athletes do not change things up every other day simply to prevent boredom. Instead, they stick to and master the basics.
Just as in weight management, our training is not the means to the end, it is the complement to our nutrition and the catalyst for developing a stronger, more energetic body that is meant for so much more than remaining on a diet forever. People, we gots things to do in life, so in similar fashion to an athlete, set your goals, define your purpose, write down your plan, and then get after it!
When developing your training routine, whether for weight loss or athletic performance, choose exercises where you are producing strength and power with the entire body. This burns the most calories, and creates the biggest hormonal response resulting in increased fat loss. The Javelin Press Routines below are perfect for just that!
This has been a favorite of ours lately… a wicked combination of:
- grip strength – lending to forearm tone and strength, and shoulder (blade) stability
- shoulder strength – read that as toned muscles, and as functional, athletic overhead strength good for most sports
- core stability – any time we do an off-loaded or unilaterally loaded movement (the weight is held only on one side), we are challenging the core to remain tight and strong, which is great for a tight waist, reducing lower back issues, and developing a functionally strong mid-section
- leg power and strength – whether lunges or step ups (both variations are shown below), this is an awesome blast to your entire body, and any time we work your legs in conjunction with your arms, your core MUST engage, and you burn more calories than with any single joint or isolated movement. (Yes, that’s a great thing!)
Javelin Press with Reverse Lunge
Javelin Press with Step Up (That’s me stepping to an 18″ step)
Try these on your own and tell us what you think. You can begin with a 9 lb Body Bar, and build up to a barbell, as shown in these videos.
