I recently stopped following a fitness coach I liked. Solid programmer, realistic expectations, no nonsense. The kind of account that’s actually rare. Then out of nowhere: videos of empty gyms at 2 a.m., dramatic lighting, captions about the grind never sleeping. I unfollowed immediately. I’m old and cranky, and I think that’s bullshit. But as… Continue reading The 3 A.M. Deadlift Isn’t Discipline. It’s Content
Yes. Sort of. Before you panic, I am not about to tell you to cancel your gym membership, throw out your barbell, and start hugging a tea towel. Although, if you do feel compelled to donate any dumbbells, my doors remain open. Instead, I want to introduce you to a delightful and slightly mad little… Continue reading Your Kitchen Table Was a Gym (According to George Jowett)
The Westside Barbell club run by Louie Simmons, is one of the current institutions of the iron game. Known for producing champion powerlifters and even effective machines such as the Reverse Hyper Extension, there is little doubting the club's importance for lifters, whether or not they adhere to powerlifting itself. In today's short post, we're… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The JM Press
Earlier this week I was given a very generous gift. The gift in question was a complete set of Wills' Cigarette Cards. Produced for an Irish and English audience in 1914, the cards depicted various physical culture exercises one could engage in to keep fit and healthy. The irony that the cards could only be… Continue reading The History of the Dumbbell Pullover
The Westside Barbell club run by Louie Simmons, is one of the current institutions of the iron game. Known for producing champion powerlifters and even effective machines such as the Reverse Hyper Extension, there is little doubting the club's importance for lifters, whether or not they adhere to powerlifting itself. In today's short post, we're… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The JM Press
I was flicking through some old strength magazines during the weekend and came across a lift that I doubt many of us are familiar with. Called the 'Seesaw' press, it is essentially a standing dumbbell shoulder press but instead of pressing both dumbbells at the same time, you alternate between reps. As you lower one dumb-bell, you… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The See-Saw Press
Admittedly this is an exercise for your physical culture purist. Stemming from the early origins of physical culture in the late nineteenth-century, English style deadlifts are unlikely to be seen in your gym any time soon. Nevertheless, this style of lifting was hugely popular amongst British and European lifters of yesteryear. Used by Goliaths like… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: English Style Deadlifts
Almost a half-century ago the one and two hand swing lifts were very popular among lifters and bodybuilders alike, especially the one hand lift. Over the years, however, both of these lifts have slumped into oblivion so that today there are very few who ever practice them, either as an exercise or for record-breaking performances.… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Dumbbell Swing
This website's love for Jack LaLanne is perhaps firmly established through our previous posts. Well with that in mind, today's post discusses the LaLanne push up, a fingertip push up now synonymous with one of twentieth-century's most vibrant fitness personalities. So in today's short post we're going to examine the exercise, its history, and most… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The LaLanne push up
The What? The Danish Floor Press! Now we are finally moving into the niche of the fitness industry. What is the Danish Floor Press? This, rather wonderful, exercises comes courtesy of Martin and Mikkel Fuldbaek from (no prizes for guessing) Denmark. It was originally devised with MMA fighters in mind around the 2010s but I've… Continue reading Forgotten Exercises: The Danish Floor Press
