Elevated Reverse Hyperextensions with a Stability Ball

August 27, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged aesthetic, back, ball, bosu, butt, core, diet, exercise, fit, fitness, glutes, gym, health, ideas, innovation, instructions, lower back, Motivation, muscle, muscles, stability, stability ball, strength, tone, waist, weight loss, workout | Leave a comment

Elevated Reverse Hyperextensions follow the same concept as Reverse Hyperextensions that are done on the ground, however when elevated you are able to increase your range of motion and challenge your core stabilization. To perform the exercise, all you need is an exercise ball and either a bench or a table. If you have not tried Reverse Hyperextensions on the floor, Click Here to view my past post and to see how to perform the exercise.

To do Elevated Reverse Ball Hyperextensions:
1. Place the Exercise ball on the elevated surface (table or bench).
2. Carefully lie down, facing forward, with your abdomen on top of the exercise ball. Grab the sides of the bench or table with your hands. Keep your legs straight and have your feet as low as you can have them. They should not be on the bench or table, but rather over the side.
3. While keeping your legs extended, raise your legs up as high as you can.
4. Slowly lower your legs back down.
4. Repeat Steps 3-4 for the allotted amount of reps. (I like to do 5 sets of 10 reps.)

TIPS:
1. Be careful when you are on top of the table or bench. Use your core and your arms to stabilize yourself. If you feel like you are tipping over, try performing Reverse Hyperextensions on the ground. Click Here to see how to perform this exercise on the ground.
2. This exercise is not about speed or how high you can get your legs, but it is all about the form. Control the motion and take your time with each rep.
3. When your legs are at the highest point, try to hold the position for about a second before you lower your legs back down. This will increase you muscle activation and make the exercise more affective.
4. Do not use the ball to bounce your legs up in the air. Doing so could cause muscle strain or you could possibly fall off the bench or table which may lead to many other injuries.

Do you like this exercise? Do you have any other exercises you like to do? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com with questions, comments, or ideas for other posts.

Feature Friday: Felipe Camargo

August 22, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Feature Friday and tagged abercrombie, aesthetic, arnold, bieber, body, brazil, bryant wood, calisthenics, camargo, collin wayne, exercise, feature, Feature Friday, fecamargo, felipe, fit, fitness, friday, gym, health, Inspiration, jeff seid, justin, LA, male, model, Motivation, muscle, muscles, sao paulo, tips | Leave a comment

First name: Felipe
Last name: Camargo
City: São Paulo
Country: Brazil
Age: 22
Height: 173cm (5’8″)
Weight: 70kg (154lbs)
Profession: Marketing Analyst

Follow Him:
Instagram: @fecamargo
Facebook: /fitfecamargo

When did you start working out?:
I started working out when I was 15 years old.

How many days a week do you work out?:
6 – 7 times a week.

How long is your average workout?:
My normal workout is about 1 hour, but 1 hour and half with cardio.

Favorite muscles to exercise:
Chest and biceps

Least favorite muscles to exercise:
Legs

Do you have any fitness goals? If so, what are they?:
I would like to prepare for Men’s physique competitions. For me, that means more muscular quality and increasing my weight.

Do you have any fitness inspirations? If so, who are they?:
Arnold, Jeff Seid, Collin Wayne, Bryant Wood.

What supplements do you take or recommend?:
Supplements are very important for an intense workout routine. I take whey protein isolate, glutamine, MCT, BCAA, chrome, vit C, B, D. But it’s not news that the most important thing in your routine is the DIET.

Can you give a brief overview of your diet?:
I eat most of the basics. I eat chicken or meat for protein and sweet potatoes or brown rice for carbs. Right now I want to gain weight, so I have 7 meals a day that have a total of about 300g of carbs and 180g of protein.

Do you have any workouts that you specifically like, that you believe are very affective?:
Not really, each body part needs a different type of stimulation. What you really need to do is push every workout to the limit, always give your best, and train like it is your last workout.

What fitness goals would you like to achieve in the future?:
I want to truly be an inspiration for everyone that has fitness goals. I want to be like the ones who inspire me today.

Do you have any tips for people who are trying to reach their fitness goals?:
Focus on your goals. Find a good professional to help you get where you want to be. Learn as much as you can with them and never give up on this.

Did you like this week’s Feature Friday, Felipe Camargo? Would you or someone you know liked to be featured? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com for questions, comments, or ideas for other topics.

Feature Friday: Tyler Martin

August 8, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Feature Friday and tagged abercrombie, aesthetic, austin, body, calisthenics, cheer, cheerleading, coach, college, dallas, exercise, feature, Feature Friday, fit, fitness, friday, gym, health, Inspiration, male, martin, model, Motivation, muscle, muscles, navarro, spirit of texas, texas, tips, tyler | Leave a comment

First name: Tyler
Last name: Martin
City: Austin
State: Texas (Originally from Dallas, Texas)
Age: 24
Height: 5’9″
Weight: 185 -190 on a good day 😉
Profession: Cheer Coach

Follow Him:
Twitter: @Topmodelmartin
Instagram: @Tyler_Martini

Are you signed to any agencies?
As of right now, I’m not signed with any agencies, but I am open to the idea.

When did you start working out?:
Around 2-3 years ago.

How many days a week do you work out?:
6 days a week.

How long is your average workout?:
Between a hour and a hour and a half.

Favorite muscles to exercise:
Legs and glutes.

Least favorite muscles to exercise:
Biceps.

Favorite cheat meal:
Pizza and Wings and cinnamon rolls (any thing unhealthy).

What sports have you done?:
I’ve done gymnastics for 16 years and cheerleading for 6 years.

When did you start Gymnastics?:
When I about 4 years old.

Favorite tumbling pass:
Any double flipping passes like double backs, double lays, full in back outs.

When did you start Cheerleading?:
My freshman year of college by complete accident. Growing up I was never interested in cheer and I never thought I would do it. At one of my gymnastics meets I got scouted and they offered me a scholarship, so I had to take the it.

What teams have you cheered on?:
Spirit of Texas and Navarro College.

What is one of your biggest accomplishments you have achieved with cheerleading?:
Grand National Collegiate Champion, 3 time National Champion, 2nd at Worlds… multiple times.. unfortunately.

Do you have any fitness goals? If so, what are they?:
I would like to start competing in men’s physique and at some point go pro.

Do you have any fitness inspirations or people you look up to?:
My old trainer who basically taught me everything when it comes to weight lifting and eating right, Charles Chester who is a pro competitor. My other inspiration would be my dad because he’s annoyingly talented at everything.

What supplements do you take or recommend?:
I take factor 9 human growth stimulator which and P6 testosterone booster which I see huge effects by the end of my cycles.

Can you give a brief overview of your diet?:
I just started eating 2lbs of clean meats throughout the day with a serving of healthy carbs and greens with each serving of meat. When I wake up, I also take 6 shots of egg whites straight from the eggs which is actually not bad tasting at all.

Do you have any tips for people who are trying to reach their fitness goals?:
Get on the right eating plan and be consistent! As hard as it may be, meeting your goals is hugely affected by what your putting in to your body.

Did you like this week’s Feature Friday, Tyler Martin? Would you or someone you know like to be featured? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com for questions, comments, or ideas for other topics.

Reverse Hyperextensions with a Stability Ball

August 7, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged aesthetic, ball, bosu, butt, core, diet, fit, fitness, glutes, gym, ideas, innovation, instructions, lower back, Motivation, muscle, muscles, stability, stability ball, strength, tone, waist, weight loss, workout | 1 Comment

Reverse Hyperextensions are a great exercise to help tone and strengthen your lower back while also working your glutes. Although this exercise is pretty easy to do, and it may even look fun, when done correctly, you will feel a burn in your lower back region. All you need for this exercise is an exercise ball.

To do Reverse Ball Hyperextensions:
1. Lie down, facing forward, with your hips on top of the exercise ball. Place your forearms on the floor, and your feet should be just off the floor. Keep your legs straight.
2. While keeping your legs extended, raise your legs up as high as you can.
3. Slowly lower your legs back down to about an inch above the floor.
4. Repeat steps 2-3 for the allotted amount of reps. (I like to do 5 sets of 10 reps.)

TIPS:
1. These should be slow controlled motions. You really want to feel a nice tightening in your lower back when you raise your legs.
2. When your legs are at the highest point, try to hold the position for about a second before you lower your legs back down. This will increase you muscle activation and make the exercise more affective.
3. This exercise can be done with your feet together or apart. I like to keep mine together, but if you do separate them, keep your feet shoulder width apart.
4. Do not use the ball to bounce your legs up in the air. Doing so could cause muscle strain or injury due to the fast motion from the bounce.

Do you like this exercise? Do you have any other exercises you like to do to strengthen your lower back? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com with questions, comments, or ideas for other posts.

Feature Friday: Ash Crawford

August 1, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Feature Friday and tagged abercrombie, actor, aesthetic, ash, ash crawford, Australia, body, calisthenics, crawford, exercise, feature, Feature Friday, fit, fitness, friday, gym, health, Inspiration, LA, male, model, Motivation, muscle, muscles, tips | 1 Comment

Ash1

First name: Ash
Last name: Crawford
City: Boston
Country: (Originally from Byron Bay, Australia)
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 185lbs
Profession: Actor/Model/Entrepreneur

Follow Him:

TikToK: @AshRCrawford https://tiktok.com/@ashrcrawford
Instagram: @AshRCrawford
Facebook: www.facebook.com/theashcrawford

Are you signed to any agencies? If so what agencies?
Print & Commercial: Daniel Hoff Agency
Manager: Me2Management

Ash3

When did you start working out?:
Growing up in Byron Bay, Australia I was active in all sports; soccer, cricket, surfing. I excelled at golf most. After high school in Australia I was recruited to go University in Texas on a D1 Golf scholarship. It was there that I began a strength and conditioning regime with the athletic department– much more rigorous than I had ever imagined. After I stopped playing golf competitively, I started working out with friends who were in the fitness industry. Since then I’ve been experimenting with all kinds of fitness and diets. I’ve found that keto works best for me and I’ve been doing that for the past few years.

How many days a week do you work out?:
5 days a week.

How long is your average workout?:
About 90 minutes

Ash2

Favorite muscles to exercise:
I like holistic, dynamic exercises like muscle-ups

Least favorite muscles to exercise:
Cardio, is that a muscle?

Do you have any fitness goals? If so, what are they?:
To be proportionate and healthy.

Do you have any fitness inspirations? If so, who are they?:
Steve Cook. He’s an absolute legend. Not only is he shredded, he is a great human. Check him out.

What supplements do you take or recommend?:
Coffee. That’s a supplement right?

Can you give a brief overview of your diet?:
Heaps of vegetables and lean meats. I try to have very minimal gluten and dairy in my diet. Keep sugars to around 50g per day also. Sodium you have to watch doesn’t creep above 2000mg per day either. Drink heaps of water. If you’re eating “clean” that’s great. But you get the biggest changes and results from consistently hitting your macros each day within 5-10g grams. Without that, you’ll plateau.

Do you have any workouts that you specifically like, that you believe are very affective?:
I really like all kinds of different training. Functional fitness is key for me. Can I be a better human? I do weightlifting, CrossFit and also a lot of Tabata Songs workouts like this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF0uWCiKs30

Ash4

Do you have any tips for people who are trying to reach their fitness goals?:
Decide what you want to do and what you want to change specifically. Be clear why you even want to change what you’re already doing. Once you decide if your goals are to lose body fat, to gain muscle, or to be able to compete in your given interest, you will approach your diet and training differently.

Do you have a website for people to visit to check out more information on you and your career?:
I’ve recently started a nitro coffee/tea and lifestyle company called Quivr. We make true cold nitro with no added anything. It’s the best out there and seeing the reaction from people has been really cool. I think everyone is sick of food and drinks that are full of bullshit. www.drinkquivr.com

You can find us on Instagram @drinkquivr instagram.com/drinkquivr

Do you have any other things you would like to say?(Comments, suggestions, etc)?:
The biggest tool that’s helped me over the years is tracking my strain and recover using WHOOP. If you know about them, then you know. If not, join me here – https://glnk.io/ovrz/ash-crawford

Please reach out to me on IG if you’d like to collaborate in anyway. I’m happy to help anyway I can. See you out there!

Did you like this week’s Feature Friday, Ash Crawford? Would you or someone you know liked to be featured? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com for questions, comments, or ideas for other topics.

Full Circle Fire Hydrants

July 28, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged at home, body, bubble, butt, control, core, exercise, exercises, fit, fitness, glutes, gym, legs, muscle, muscles, nutrition, physique, skinny, strength, strong, tone, train, workout | Leave a comment

To be honest, I don’t know what to call this exercise because I made it up about a year ago and I have been doing it ever since. I took an exercise called ‘The Fire Hydrant’ and basically made it more complicated so I could target all areas of my glutes. I decided to use the name ‘Full Circle Fire Hydrants’ because you follow a circle pattern with your leg during the exercise. It may look easy, but if done correctly, your glutes will be on fire.

To Perform FULL CIRCLE FIRE HYDRANTS:
1. Start with your hands and knees both on the floor. Create a table top with your back and keep your hands and knees both shoulder width apart. (Picture 1)
2. With your left knee and both hands on the ground, lift your right knee and pull it into your chest. Crunch your torso toward the knee and contract your core. (Picture 2)
3. Now rotate your hip to raise the knee to your right side. Your knee should still be bend and your leg should be parallel to the ground. (Picture 3)
4. Extend and straighten your right leg keeping it parallel to the floor. (Picture 4)
5. Slowly move your leg toward the back. Your leg should be behind you now. (Picture 5)
6. Bend the right leg and return your right knee to your chest. Crunch your body toward your knee and contract your core. (Picture 2)
7. Repeat steps 3-7 for the allotted amount of reps (I usually do 10), and then repeat on the other side.

TIPS:
1. This exercise is all about form. Do not compromise form!
2. Hold each position of the leg for one second before moving onto the next step. Each movement should be nice and controlled.
3. Keep your shoulders square. It is ok to bend your elbows during this exercise if you need more stabilization, but do not twist your shoulders.
4. When I bring my knee to my chest (Step 2), I like to crunch toward my knee. Tighten your core and breathe out while your knee is in this position to give you abs a nice squeeze.
5. When extending your knee to the side (Step 4), keep your leg turned in. Some people may want to twist their leg so their knee faces the ceiling, but your knee should be facing forward.
6. After bringing your leg behind you (Step 5), it is good if you can raise your leg past parallel. Raise your leg as high as you can without bending your knee. You should feel a nice squeeze in your glutes.

Do you think you may try this exercise next time you are at the gym? If you do, let me know what you think of it. Do you have any questions, comments, or any ideas for other topics? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com

One Arm Medicine Ball Pushups

July 19, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged body, build, chest, core, diet, exercise, fit, fitness, gym, medicine ball, Motivation, muscle, nutrition, pecs, strength, stretch, train, training, workout | Leave a comment

Do you want a new chest exercise that will really stretch and activate your pecs? This exercise activates all areas of your chest, works on your stabilization skills, and also gives your pecs a nice pull allowing your muscles to lengthen and grow.

To perform a One Arm Medicine Ball Pushups:
1. Start in a Pushup Plank Position with one hand on the floor and one hand on top of a medicine ball.
2. Lower into a pushup keeping one hand on the medicine ball.
3. Return to the Pushup Plank Position.
4. Roll the ball to the opposite hand and repeat the exercise.
5. Continue rolling the ball from one hand to the other with a pushup in between. I like to do 10 reps (20 pushups, 10 on the right, 10 on the left).

TIPS:
1. Activate your core in order to stabilize your body. When lowering into the push position, you should not tip to one side or droop your body to the floor.
2. Your chest should be parallel to the floor. If you tilt your shoulders, your chest will no longer be parallel and you will not be using the correct muscles during the exercise. (In the second picture, my shoulders are a little lopsided. Try to avoid this positioning and aim for a more parallel look like the positioning I achieved in the third picture. Form is important for this and every exercise).
3. Your feet can be wide, shoulder width apart, or together. The closer your feet are, the more your core will need to activate to stabilize your body.
4. I like to alternate sides during the exercise, rolling the ball to the opposing hand between each pushup. Other people may recommend doing all 10 pushups on one side, and then switching to the other hand to do the other 10. Either way works well, I just find continuously alternating makes the exercise more challenging because you are constantly shifting your weight and positioning.

Do you enjoy this workout? Do you have any other chest workouts that may be helpful? Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com with any questions, comments, or ideas for other blog topics.

Rolling Pistol Squats

June 19, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged abs, amrap, build, butt, cardio, core, crossfit, diet, exercise, glutes, gym, hamstrings, health, heart, leg, legs, muscle, muscles, new, nutrition, pistol, quads, six pack, squat, squats, strength, sweat, tone, variation, workout | Leave a comment

One of the benchmark exercises to do in any CrossFit gym is a Pistol Squat. Pistol Squats involve only using one leg to squat down and push back up to the standing position. This exercise is very difficult and requires a lot of practice and strength to complete. Rolling Pistol Squats are an easier variation of the standard Pistol Squat because they allow you to use momentum to your advantage. Rolling Pistol Squats are also a great cardio and full body workout.

To Perform a Rolling Pistol Squat:
1. Start in the standing position with both feet on the floor.
2. Squat down with your glutes as close to the floor as possible and create a comfortable curve in your back to prepare to roll backward.
3. Roll backward onto your back and raise your legs in the air.
4. Using the momentum of throwing your legs forward, place one foot on the ground as close to your glutes as possible with the other leg straight out in front of you and stand up.
5. Once standing, put the leg that is straight out in front of you back down to return to the standing position.
6. Repeat the exercise from Step 2 and alternate legs with each rep.

TIPS:
1. When I roll backward, I like to keep my legs straight and bring my legs as close to my chest as I can. I give them a light pull with my hands and this allows me to give my hamstrings a stretch.
2. The closer you can place your foot to you glutes when you role forward, the easier it will be to stand up.
3. Momentum is key! Quickly bring your legs forward to make the push up from the floor easier.
4. For anyone with a knee or hip injury, any variation of a pistol squat is not recommended. Never do a workout that causes you pain. Listen to your body!
5. Rolling Pistol Squats are great to help tone your legs, but they also wok your core and provide a good cardio workout as well. I like to use Rolling Pistol Squats in between other exercises to keep my heart rate up. I usually do about 16 reps per set (8 on each leg), and about 3-5 sets during my workout.

Have you ever tried Rolling Pistol Squats? Do you plan on adding these to your workout routine? I really appreciate any feedback. Contact me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com.

How to get the most out of your Calf Raises!

March 27, 2014 by corestrengthalec in Exercises and tagged calf, calf raises, calves, control, exercise, fitness, Gastrocnemius, gym, leg workout, legs, motion, muscle, muscles, physique, plan, power plate, raises, shred, soleus, sweat, tips, tone, workout | Leave a comment

Calf Raises can be done many ways; however, there are a few tips to understand and follow in order to get the most out of the exercise.

First of all DO NOT BOUNCE! When you bounce or do quick calf raises, the work is being done by your Achilles tendon, not your calf muscles. You may feel a burn in your calf muscle, but it is not being targeted well enough to see results.

Doing a slow controlled movement from a rest (standing) position to the balls of your feet will activate all of the muscles in your calves.

If calf raises are done with straight legs, all of the parts of the calf will be working, but most of the work will be done by the very visible, large muscle on the outer part of the calf (Gastrocnemius). This will promote thickness and definition of your calf. If calf raises are done with bent knees, the smaller muscle behind the Gastrocnemius (Soleus) will be doing most of the work. Now although the Soleus muscle is not as visible as the Gastrocnemius, because it is behind the larger muscle, it will cause the Gastrocnemius to swell and visibly pop out more. Both are beneficial so I like to alternate between bent and straight legs between sets.

Calf raises can be very effective with no weight; however if you are doing weighted calf raises, the same principle applies. Use slow controlled motions rather than a bouncing movement.

Another possible way to change up the exercise is doing calf raises on a ledge where your heels hang over the edge. When lowering, go past parallel with the floor and stretch your calf muscles more. This will give you a wider range of motion for the muscle; therefore working the muscle in a different, harder way.

The gym I currently go to has a Power Plate. I like to start off my calf routine with 3 sets of slow calf raises on the Power Plate, and then I do 4 sets of weighted calf raises on one of the calf machines. Do what works best for you, but make sure to follow these tips.

I hope you found this article helpful. If you have any questions, concerns, or ideas for other articles, please email me at corestrengthalec@gmail.com

Feature Friday: Eric Turner

May 3, 2013 by corestrengthalec in Feature Friday and tagged eric, eric turner, erictastic, exercise, feature, Feature Friday, fitness, friday, gym, health, Inspiration, mesomorph, model, Motivation, muscle, muscles, personal, supplements, tips, trainer, turner | 2 Comments

First name: Eric
Last name: Turner
City: Houston
State: Texas (Originally from Herriman, UT)
Age: 32
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 208
Profession: Personal Trainer

Follow Him:
Twitter: @erictastic
Instagram: erictastic

When did you start working out?:
When I was 21.

How many days a week do you work out?:
I do weights 5 days a week and I do cardio 6 days a week.

How long is your average workout?:
Usually 90 min

Favorite muscles to exercise:
Legs

Least favorite muscles to exercise:
Legs. lol

Do you have any fitness goals? If so, what are they?:
I’m constantly trying to better myself and my symmetry, and I’m currently competing for my IFBB Pro Card.

Do you have any fitness inspirations? If so, who are they?:
Jaco De Bruyn

What supplements do you take or recommend?:
I think people misunderstand what supplements are for. They are intended to supplement any areas that your diet is lacking. I tend to only take supplements when I’m dieting down so that I still get the nutients that I’m lacking.

Can you give a brief overview of your diet?:
It’s constantly changing, so that I won’t plateau. It generally consists of around 45-50% of kilocalories from carbs, 30-35% of kcal from proteins, and 15-20% of kcal from fats.

Do you have any workouts that you specifically like, that you believe are very affective?:
You can’t have a good physique if you focus too much on one thing. Variety is the spice of life when it comes to me working out. I have lately been obsessed with lateral raise drop sets though.

Do you have any tips for people who are trying to reach their fitness goals?:
Keep with it. Consistency is the magic ingredient!

Do you have any other things you would like to say?(Comments, suggestions, etc)?:
I get a lot of questions from people who have all sorts of strange ideas of things they’ve heard… I think the biggest misnomer that people have is that low carb is always the way to go. If you’re looking to build muscle, you can’t pack on muscle without eating carbs, and cutting them out actually makes gaining muscle pretty difficult.

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