WAAAAH
February 8, 2010 3:57 PM Subscribe
Some more exercise blog/site recommendations for a capable non-specialist.
Skip to the bottom if you don't care about this stuff: I'm a 25 year old male, enjoying somewhat above average fitness levels. My main mantra in exercising is variety. It keeps me interested, and I think that the biggest variety of motions and activities will produce the most well rounded strength and endurance. On alternating days I run. Sometimes I run distances, sometimes I run a mile or two for time, sometimes I do vie de park sometimes I run intervals and sometimes barefoot. On other alternating days I do some variety of strength training. I do straight routines, supersets, and circuits of both weights and body weight exercises at both ends of the weight/reps/sets spectrum. I skip days when i feel like I should, which is not often. Also, daily stretching and/or yoga. I want to swim, among other things too, but that's in the works. To boil it down, I'd rather be Bruce Lee than Arnold Schwartzeneggar. In fact, I'm Bruce's height (5'7") and in the same weight range (145lbs). I'd look funnier than usual all bulked out.
The blogs I currently frequent:
I agree with the general philosophy of CrossFit and sometimes do their daily workouts, but I still feel that their routines are too strength and bulk centric.
My favorite (of a very low sample size) is actually Body Rock. Some of the circuit routines are truly brutal and scale according to how much you put into them. Plus, her videos are more fun to watch than videos with some Lou Ferrigno lookalike. However, she's more concerned with shape than I am and she's more concerned with leg work than I need to be.
That's it. I have a couple others that I have marked, but that I don't really look at. I modify routines from both of these and make up my own, but I want more reference. I also refer to The Art of Expressing the Human Body.
Really, I'm looking for varied, unusual routines in site, book, or blog form. I'm not interested so much in nutrition, people's philosophy about exercise or motivation or whatever. I just want the exercises and routines. I'm thinking about expanding my arsenal to include sandbags and kettelbells specifically, but that's not happening yet. I have a chinup bar, weights and a bench, and an improvised roman chair/back extension setup along with an ab wheel thing, wrist roller setup, and leverage bar setup.
Skip to the bottom if you don't care about this stuff: I'm a 25 year old male, enjoying somewhat above average fitness levels. My main mantra in exercising is variety. It keeps me interested, and I think that the biggest variety of motions and activities will produce the most well rounded strength and endurance. On alternating days I run. Sometimes I run distances, sometimes I run a mile or two for time, sometimes I do vie de park sometimes I run intervals and sometimes barefoot. On other alternating days I do some variety of strength training. I do straight routines, supersets, and circuits of both weights and body weight exercises at both ends of the weight/reps/sets spectrum. I skip days when i feel like I should, which is not often. Also, daily stretching and/or yoga. I want to swim, among other things too, but that's in the works. To boil it down, I'd rather be Bruce Lee than Arnold Schwartzeneggar. In fact, I'm Bruce's height (5'7") and in the same weight range (145lbs). I'd look funnier than usual all bulked out.
The blogs I currently frequent:
I agree with the general philosophy of CrossFit and sometimes do their daily workouts, but I still feel that their routines are too strength and bulk centric.
My favorite (of a very low sample size) is actually Body Rock. Some of the circuit routines are truly brutal and scale according to how much you put into them. Plus, her videos are more fun to watch than videos with some Lou Ferrigno lookalike. However, she's more concerned with shape than I am and she's more concerned with leg work than I need to be.
That's it. I have a couple others that I have marked, but that I don't really look at. I modify routines from both of these and make up my own, but I want more reference. I also refer to The Art of Expressing the Human Body.
Really, I'm looking for varied, unusual routines in site, book, or blog form. I'm not interested so much in nutrition, people's philosophy about exercise or motivation or whatever. I just want the exercises and routines. I'm thinking about expanding my arsenal to include sandbags and kettelbells specifically, but that's not happening yet. I have a chinup bar, weights and a bench, and an improvised roman chair/back extension setup along with an ab wheel thing, wrist roller setup, and leverage bar setup.
I agree with the general philosophy of CrossFit and sometimes do their daily workouts, but I still feel that their routines are too strength and bulk centric.
Stepping into a few CrossFit gyms would probably disabuse you of that notion.
posted by ludwig_van at 7:57 PM on February 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
Stepping into a few CrossFit gyms would probably disabuse you of that notion.
posted by ludwig_van at 7:57 PM on February 8, 2010 [5 favorites]
Best answer: How about some more gymnastic type things? Maybe Floreio? Or more traditional bodyweight feats from beast skills? Or rings?
posted by jopreacher at 8:28 PM on February 8, 2010
posted by jopreacher at 8:28 PM on February 8, 2010
OK, I'll bite: what is "vie de park"? Google throws up only an earlier question from cmoj.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 10:18 AM on February 9, 2010
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 10:18 AM on February 9, 2010
Response by poster: OK, I'll bite: what is "vie de park"? Google throws up only an earlier question from cmoj.
Hmm, yeah. I'm mangling it badly enough that i can't find what it's supposed to be. It's just running, stopping to do pushups or sit-ups or, ideally, using playground equipment or something along the way and keeping on running. Maybe someone knows the proper term.
Stepping into a few CrossFit gyms would probably disabuse you of that notion.
It's true I've never been to a CrossFit gym, so I'm going only by what I've seen on the site. But I don't intend to join a gym either.
These look good. All of these links look worth perusing, which I'll be doing.
posted by cmoj at 11:55 AM on February 9, 2010
Hmm, yeah. I'm mangling it badly enough that i can't find what it's supposed to be. It's just running, stopping to do pushups or sit-ups or, ideally, using playground equipment or something along the way and keeping on running. Maybe someone knows the proper term.
Stepping into a few CrossFit gyms would probably disabuse you of that notion.
It's true I've never been to a CrossFit gym, so I'm going only by what I've seen on the site. But I don't intend to join a gym either.
These look good. All of these links look worth perusing, which I'll be doing.
posted by cmoj at 11:55 AM on February 9, 2010
Response by poster: OK now that I've gone through these I couldn't have hoped for better. I like the grappling circuit, and Floreio is precisely what I'd hoped for. Stuff from all of these is going in my logbook though.
posted by cmoj at 12:59 PM on February 9, 2010
posted by cmoj at 12:59 PM on February 9, 2010
I think the term you're looking for is free running...or parkour maybe?
posted by kro at 8:43 PM on February 9, 2010
posted by kro at 8:43 PM on February 9, 2010
Response by poster: I'm familiar with free running and parkour... those are closer to skateboarding or gymnastics. It's about the tricks as much or more than the fitness. I've been into both before, but it's no fun doing it on your own.
I finally asked my dad, where I heard the term. It's vita de parkours, which returns relavent, if mostly French, results.
posted by cmoj at 11:02 AM on February 10, 2010
I finally asked my dad, where I heard the term. It's vita de parkours, which returns relavent, if mostly French, results.
posted by cmoj at 11:02 AM on February 10, 2010
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Also, take a look at the Male Pattern Fitness blog. No specific workouts there, but he often links to sites that do have good workouts, and I've gotten a lot of interesting ideas from the site.
Finally, while I agree with you regarding Crossfit being a bit to bulk-centric, have you checked out their "benchmark" workouts? Many are bodyweight-exercise focused, target anaerobic endurance rather than pure strength, and are deceptively difficult.
Oh, one more bonus workout: Randy Couture's "grappling circuit" - another deceptively simple routine that targets endurance as much as strength.
posted by googly at 6:15 PM on February 8, 2010