Leverage your Body's Strength

“Every-Other Day” Routine Perform this routine every-other day or three times a week (at least one day of rest between every workout).

Jump to:

• Warm-Up
• Cardio
• Resistance Training
  • Push
  • Pull
  • Squat
  • Core
  • Supplementary Exercises
  • Stretches
• Notes

Warm-up 

W.A.S.H – 5 reps in each direction (each side where applicable)

Wrists

Ankles

Ankle Circumduction (standing preferred)

Shoulders

Shoulder Circumduction

Shoulder Roll

Hips

Circumduction

Hacky Sack

Pivot and Reach

Cardio (e.g. bike, Treadmill, Arc Trainer, or Animal Flow)

Once or twice per week:

20 minute interval training:  6 minute warm-up at a low intensity followed by 2 minute work and rest intervals.  Each work interval should be sufficiently intense (resistance, speed, etc.) to cause you to “fail” the talk test. This is the point at which you have to catch your breath every 3-5 words in conversation.

Remaining workout days:

20 minute steady-state training: 6 minute warm-up at low intensity followed by 14 minutes at constant moderate intensity (just below talk test failure).

Resistance Training

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Push – Choose 3 sets x 10 repetitions of any of the following exercises:

[TRX Length: Long]                 [TRX Length: Long]
Assisted Push-Up (TRX high press OR TRX low press)

 

Dumbbell Chest Press (High OR Low Press)


Incline Dumbbell Chest Press (or standing “A-Frame” or stability ball)

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Pull – Choose 3 sets x 10 repetitions of any of the following exercises:

[TRX Length: Long/Medium]                 [TRX Length: Short]
Inverted Row (TRX High- OR Low-Back Row)

One-Arm Dumbbell Row (High- OR Low-Back)



Lat Pull-Down


Pull-up (Squat-Assisted, TRX or shoulder-height bar)

 

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Squat – Choose 3 sets x 10 repetitions of any of the following exercises:

[TRX Length: extra-short]
Squat (Row-Assisted, Full Body Weight, OR Sumo Goblet)


Step-Ups (Bodyweight OR Dumbbell-resisted)

If cleared by PT: Reverse Lunge (TRX-Assisted, Full Body Weight, OR Dumbbell/Plate Resisted )

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Core Exercises (Optional if TRX/Body Leverage chosen for Push/Pull)

Pelvic Tilt   1 set x 8 reps

Bird Dog   1 set x 8 reps

Cat/Cow   1 set x 10 reps

Bridge (Knee, Full, One-Leg, or Dynamic)     2 times for 30 seconds

Side Bridge (Knees Bent, or Full)    2 times for 20 seconds

Hamstring Bridge (low, medium, OR highest resistance)   2 times for 30 seconds

Hamstring Curl (Stability Ball OR TRX)    2 sets x 8 reps

Modified Cobra (Sphinx Pose)    1 x 20 seconds

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External Shoulder Rotation (Dumbbell, Band, OR TRX)

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Stretches – Hold each stretch once (per side, where applicable) for 30 seconds

Piriformis (Outer thigh, supine, seated OR standing)

Butterfly (inner thigh, seated or supine)

BOSU Ball Chest / Shoulder / Cervical Spine
OR


Chair thoracic extension (place rolled towel behind back to move stretch up or down)

Child’s Pose with Side Stretches

Hip Flexor Stretch

Quadriceps Stretch (lying or standing)

Hamstring and Calf Stretch (Supine / Standing, toes on wall, chest up)

Shoulder Circles (8 circles in both directions)

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Notes

P.U.F.F. up any sugar or simple carbohydrates you might consume to reduce blood sugar spikes, which result in food comas, pangs of hunger, and fat cell growth.

Add:

1. Protein
2. Unrefined food
3. Fat 
4. Fiber

For minor musculoskeletal injuries, remember P.O.L.I.C.E.:

• Protection
• Optimal
• Load
• Compress
• Elevate

The best nutritional advice can be summed up as follows:

1. Eat food—what your great grandparents would recognize as food, not the stuff in the center aisles of the grocery store)
2. Not too much. Eat to 80% satiety. One helpful hack: drink a glass of water before each meal.
3. Mostly plants. Whole, unprocessed, and packed with fiber, phytochemicals, vitamins, and minerals!

Credit to Michael Pollan for the first three.

Do This Not That: exercises to avoid and some alternatives

Pointers for Minimalist Running Technique:

1. Forefoot/midfoot strike instead of heel
2. More frequent steps (120 – 180 steps x min—two to three per second!) and shorter strides
3. Soft landings (earplugs will help you hear the ground reactive force)
4. Grip the ground gently with your toes and sweep back to reduce “braking”
5. Keep your feet engaged by lifting your arches and centering your ankle over the foot (see short foot exercise)
6. To the extent comfortable, keep knees/toes pointed in the direction of travel
7. Ramp up this style of running gradually—you’ll feel soreness in muscles you didn’t know you had! Take a 1-2 days off from it anytime you need for full recovery and consider using the arc trainers on your rest day(s) instead of the treadmill.