I was just reading through some old fitness-related emails from a colleague of mine, Ryan Murdock.. and I found one on this idea of a Royal Marines Fitness Test Challenge.
From the further research I did, it looks like this is called the PJFT+ test. Here’s what it consists of:
20 burpees
rest for 10 seconds
20 sit ups
20 push ups
60 second plank
Potential recruits are expected to complete the circuit three times.
The Challenge is supposed to test your functional fitness.
As the email I got this idea from mentioned, it actually doesn’t seem all that functional.
It’s okay, but honestly it could be improved.
A better option might be something like the Warrior Zero Bodyweight Challenge, where you do a series of three “functional fitness” Challenges, each progressively harder than the next… and it much more dials in on things like bodyweight strength, endurance, core, proper movement, etc.
If you are interested in taking the full Challenge, check out Warrior Zero Bodyweight at the link below:
I have a stretch of some travel over these next couple / few months, for both work and fun.
One thing that can be a little tricky while on vacation is figuring out how to stay active and workout.
Bringing kettlebells on an airplane doesn’t sound like the best idea, especially with my wife who always packs way too much stuff and our two little ones in tow!
And sometimes the gyms at hotels or resorts aren’t as great as we hope they’ll be.
So, for the coming weeks and months, I’ll be sure to have some great bodyweight workouts ready. It’s a good change for my body every now and then and it feels really nice on my joints.
There’s this program called the Warrior Zero Bodyweight Challenge that I really like. I’m planning on doing some of their workouts while I’m on the road, like the one below:
Set your timer for 15 minutes. Begin with 2 reps of exercise #1, then 2 reps of exercise #2, and so on. Gradually increase the reps, moving up and down the ladder. Focus on perfect form, not speed.
EXERCISES:
Hip Bridge
Shinbox Switch
Front Squat
Tactical Push Up
Spinal Rock
Sit Thru
Front Lunge
Pull Press
*Detailed demos and explanations for each exercise can be found in the Warrior Zero Bodyweight Challenge course here.
What’s great about this workout is that you don’t need ANY equipment! No lugging around kettlebells or bands or any other gear… and not to mention, it’s totally different and one-of-a-kind.
If you’re interested in checking out the complete Warrior Zero course, you can do so by clicking on THIS LINK.
Have a great day, and talk soon! –
–Forest Vance Master of Science, Human Movement Kettlebell Expert Over 40 Specialist KettlebellBasics.net
Often we hear from well-meaning, yet misinformed fitness trainers suggest that a slow and steady route to lean physique is best.
However, the truth revealed tells a completely different story…
Achieving A Lean Body Should Be As Swift As Taking Off A Band-Aid!
How do you prefer removing your band-aid? Quickly, right? It may sting momentarily but surely outweighs any other option.
Surprisingly enough, this principle rings true when it comes to shedding fat as well.
You might have heard warnings about losing weight too rapidly; stories of metabolism crash or even rebound weight gain?
Well surprise surprise my dear friend! Striving for gradual loss appears to not hold its ground. Actually, casting off that extra body fat should be exactly like pulling off band-aid – Prompt and swift so you can move ahead without delay!
Another study examining the effects of long-term mild-caloric deficit dieting in humans found that long-term dieters suffered from 78% lower testosterone levels and 28% lower VO2Max levels! [2]
And yet another long-term analysis of European dieters showed that dieters who lost the most weight during an initial 8-week diet phase were the most successful at KEEPING the weight off six months later — even when using very low a calorie approach. [3]
Now that you’ve seen the evidence that proves it’s better to lose fat quickly, let me show the simple step-by-step plan you can use to make that happen:
*This is a throwback pic from a Spartan event I did back in 2020 – sprint workouts made up a good portion of the training I did to prepare.
We put on a special “Lean and Jacked” workout day at my PT studio here in the Kansas City area last night – it was so much fun!
The “Lean and Jacked” workout concept is where we COMBINE getting JACKED (work the traditional big barbell lifts like squat, bench, and deadlift) and LEAN (kettlebells, mobility, sprinting, etc).
It’s really interesting, because I’ll get people who are actually pretty darn strong to turn out for these type of events…
Here is a simple sprint workout you can add to the end of your next session as a start. (You can also do this on a separate day from your KBs, or any other time that fits your schedule):
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“Lean and Jacked” – KB / Sprint Finisher
Complete the circuit below as fast as possible:
50 m hill power walk / run / sprint (adjust for YOUR current fitness level; outdoors or treadmill okay!)
20 two hand KB swings
8 push ups
50 m hill power walk / run / sprint (adjust for YOUR current fitness level; outdoors or treadmill okay!)
18 two hand KB swings
10 push ups
50 m hill power walk / run / sprint (adjust for YOUR current fitness level; outdoors or treadmill okay!)
16 two hand KB swings
12 push ups
50 m hill power walk / run / sprint (adjust for YOUR current fitness level; outdoors or treadmill okay!)
14 two hand KB swings
14 push ups
50 m hill power walk / run / sprint (adjust for YOUR current fitness level; outdoors or treadmill okay!)
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Next time you watch a track event, check out the physique difference between long distance runners and the sprinters. The sprinters almost always are leaner, more muscular, etc – it’s pretty wild!
Plus, research shows that sprinting has the compound effect of increasing metabolism, increasing tesosterone, and making you more athletic, all at the same time.
If you want a full sprinting program with lots of workouts like the free sample today, I recommend Anabolic Sprinting 2.0 linked below:
I was reading up on this new “Underground Fat Loss” method – there are certainly some interesting things the author Matt Marshall has to say, so I wanted to look into it a little more myself!…
Weight Loss Lie #3: Carbs Raise Insulin & Make You Store Fat
When it comes to losing fat, you’ve probably heard that you need to cut carbs if you wanna lose weight? Maybe you’ve even tried a low-carb diet over the years. If you did, I bet ya a doughnut I can guess what happened:
First two weeks went great – you dropped a bunch of weight. Mostly water, but some fat too. And then…. Nada. Weight loss came to a screeching stop. And… oddly enough. You were cold all the time. Especially your hands and your feet.
Am I in the right neighborhood? Maybe you already know why this happened – without adequate carbohydrates, your body produces less T3. T3 – or triiodothyronine for you science geeks – is a hormone that controls metabolism AND rate of fat burning.
Strange Bagel Study Proves You Can Crush Carbs All Day Long Without Gaining Fat
Check out this medical research study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition…
Researchers found a bunch of volunteers and basically crammed bagels down their throat for a week. I’m not even kidding – they overfed these volunteers 1,000 EXTRA calories (mostly from carbs) on day 1.
Just one problem. All these extra carbs actually…
Increased Metabolism By 37%!
This totally messed with the experiment.
So on day 2 researchers upped the ante. They overfed participants an extra 1,500 calories. But again, each volunteers’ metabolism increased again, this time burning an extra 470 calories. By the end of the week researchers were begging the volunteers to cram down bagels and despite 5 days of massive over-eating none of the participants gained any appreciable amount of body fat.
This PROVES that it’s possible to enjoy delicious carbohydrates without gaining fat. And in fact you can even enjoy many of your favorite carb-heavy dishes and lose weight.
If you’ve been thinking about giving it a try, but haven’t pulled the trigger yet, let me shed some light on how it works, along with giving you a sneak peek at a sample workout.
The original 5×5 workout is known as an efficient strength-building routine based around essential compound movements – such as squats, deadlifts, and bench press among others. You do five sets of five reps for each exercise, hence “5×5”. The aim is to gradually increase weight while maintaining good form. This simple yet intensive routine is great for gaining strength and lean muscle!
Now comes in our newest evolution – The Kettlebell 5×5 Program! With the new Kettlebell 5×5 Method, you’re going to use the classic 5×5 template, but you’ll use kettlebell exercises, which will not only help you gain strength and size, but you’ll build your core, mobility, and avoid injury, all at the same time.
Now. When doing the 5×5 program with kettlebells, we need to be a bit more strategic. This is because with barbells, you can simply increase the weight once you can handle five sets of five reps. But kettlebell weights tend to make bigger jumps.
That’s why we’ll have some fun playing around with details like tempo, rest periods, exercise variations, etc.
Here is an example workout. (Details on things like how to progress from one ‘bell to two, how to increase overload WITHOUT upping the weight as an option, etc are included in the full program and video breakdowns):
KB 5×5 – WEEK 1 / WORKOUT 2
PART 1 – Do 5 KB clean and presses on the right side. Rest 60-120 seconds. Do 5 KB clean and presses on the left side. Rest 60-120 seconds. Go back to side one and complete a total of five rounds. When you can get 5 sets of 5 reps, progress – adjust lifting tempo, reduce rest period, pick a harder exercise variation, or increase weight.
PART 2 – Do exercise one. Rest 60-120 seconds. Do exercise 2. Rest 60-120 seconds. Go back to exercise one and complete a total of five rounds. When you can get 5 sets of of movement #1, progress – adjust lifting tempo, reduce rest period, pick a harder exercise variation, or increase weight:
— Turkish Get Up – 1 per side — Single arm KB rows – 12 reps per side
PART 3 – Do as many reps as you can of exercise one in 30 seconds. Rest for 15 seconds. Do as many reps as you can of exercise two in 30 seconds. Rest for 15 seconds. Do three rounds total:
— Close push ups — Jumping jacks — KB crush curl — High knees in place
There you have your Kettlebell 5×5 sample workout. As I mentioned, details on things like how to progress from one ‘bell to two, how to increase overload WITHOUT upping the weight as an option, etc are included in the full program and video breakdowns. Click the link below to learn more and start the program today:
For the past 11 or 12 years, I’ve hardly ever missed a morning stretch, and let me tell you – when I do miss it, I feel the consequences!
My body feels stiffer, more sore, and I’m more prone to injuries during my workouts.
Here’s an example of what my daily flexibility series might include (this one is actually from the Hyperbolic Stretching 28-day Challenge where you’ll work towards doing the splits):
Standing straddle with alternating toe reach – 3x:10 per side
Lying piriformis stretch – 3x:10 per side
Standing forward fold “head to toe” stretch – 3x:20
Toe flex – 3x:10 per side
“Drop stance” hip flexor stretch – 3x:15 per side
Seated straddle split stretch – 3x:15 per side
Standing quad stretch – 3x:20 per side
Lying abdominal stretch – 3x:15
*For detailed exercises breakdowns and demonstrations, be sure to check out the full Hyperbolic Stretching 28-day Challenge course HERE.
Flexibility will greatly enhance your kettlebell training, as well as various other aspects of life. Make it a habit to incorporate a daily stretching routine in order to achieve the best results in the shortest amount of time. I highly recommend giving the Hyperbolic Stretching 28-day Challenge a try. Click here to start now.
I’m just chilling here on this Sunday morning before heading off to church with the fam in about an hour. Finished up breakfast and thought I’d shoot you a quick email with some thoughts for the coming week:
Do you have a proven system in place to achieve your fitness goals in 2024? Or are you just randomly trying out different KB workouts you find on Instagram or YouTube?
Nutrition is also key. You need an approach that promotes fat loss and can be sustained long-term because let’s face it – you can’t out-train a bad diet!
Finally, most people need accountability and support to truly succeed.
If you’re looking for some help in 2024 with all of these things and more I recommend you check out the program I am accepting applications for now at the link below:
Main point of today’s message is, if you want to get the best fitness results, follow a proven plan, NOT random workouts.
Have an awesome day, and catch ya later!
-Forest Vance Master of Science, Human Movement Owner, FVT Personal Training Author, the CORE Kettlebell Challenge ForestVanceTraining.com KettlebellBasics.net
This program is designed to increase reps and volume each day for 30 days. You need to see the full plan to understand how it works, but the example daily push up progression below, written in the style of the Push Up Mastery Guide, should give you a general idea. There is both a beginner and advanced version of the program so you can start with the plan that works best for you depending on your fitness level.
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2x Your Push Ups in 30 Days Plan [example week]
DAYS 1-5: ESTABLISH A BASELINE PYRAMID PROGRESSION
Day 1: Perform a set of push-ups to failure (+Active recovery – other kettlebell workout / etc.) Day 2: Active recovery – other kettlebell workout / etc. Day 3: Perform 3 sets at 50% of max reps with 45 seconds rest between sets. (+Active recovery – other kettlebell workout / etc.) Day 4: Isometric holds at the bottom of the push-up position for 30 seconds each, repeated for 3 sets. (+Active recovery – other kettlebell workout / etc.) Day 5: Dynamic warm-up followed by 2 sets of push-ups at 60% of max reps with 60 seconds rest between sets. (+Active recovery – other kettlebell workout / etc.)
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For the full program that will help you do more push ups, click the link below:
It closely resembles the plan I used to help R get her first pull-up.
I first used something very similar to it to add 4 pull ups to my single-set max, and went from 9 to 13 in one month.
Then, I gave it to a couple dozen clients that had this specific goal, and ALL that followed it to a “T” got great results.
Rachel got her first pull up … John went from 3 to 5 in one month, then got to 12 about 60 days later … Byron went from 2 to 6 in one month, eventually hitting a set of 15 later in the year … just to name a few.
This plan is simple, but it is also very powerful.
I can’t wait to hear about the results you get using it!
It’s actually a free BONUS program you get when you pick up a copy of the Physique Zero course:
