The smaller and simpler a form of energy is, the more powerful it is. Don’t
believe me? Compare the combination of two chemicals in Chemistry 101 with the
splitting of the atom. Compare the splitting of the atom with the energy that
drives every single electron, proton, and neutron in the known universe to do
what they all do. There’s just no comparison. While complex programs do have
their place, you can get a lot more done with a lot less. What does all of this
have to do with fitness? You’re about to find out.
Take the Atomic Challenge! If you want a routine that will be sure to help any
newcomer to weight training develop skills that transfer to just about any sport
or walk of life and that can also challenge the hardest of hardasses? Well look
no further. “Back to basics” is a term that’s getting thrown around a lot right
now, and you can’t get any more basic than some of these key movements. Normally
in a workout routine you get shuffled with different body parts to workout on
separate days, or extremely complicated routines designed by the latest Muscle &
Fiction magazine. Sure, some of them will help you look good, provided you’ve
been bodybuilding for quite a while already and are a fitness model, but what
can you really do with that body of yours? Well, here’s another of our free workout programs that takes
three movements (yep. Just three) and forms an entire routine from them.
These three movements are the Swing, the Clean-Squat-Press (sometimes called the
Full Thruster), and the Muscle-up. This 1-3-2 punch is sure to liven up anyone’s
training, even if only for a few weeks. The skills you learn will transfer over
to just about any sport, from climbing to football to mixed martial arts, and
will help show you some of your deficiencies in your fitness.
Each of these three deserve articles in their own right, for those who don’t
know.
Three simple movements actually give you nearly everything a beginner would need
to learn how to do: Swing, Deadlift, Clean, Squat, Standing Press, Pullup, and
Dip. At the same time, advanced athletes can always come back to these basics to
combine them and learn something new.
The swing is generally performed with either dumbbells or kettlebells, and it
was actually the kettlebell community that reintroduced the swing into American
fitness. It’s a fairly simple movement. Place one kettlebell (or dumbbell)
between your feet. Push back with your butt, like you’re about to sit down in a
chair, and bend your knees to get into the starting position. Grab the
kettlebell with both hands, and make sure that your back is flat and look
straight ahead. Swing the kettlebell back between your legs. Then quickly
reverse the direction and drive though with your hips taking the kettlebell
straight out. Let the kettlebell swing back between your legs and repeat. Your
arms should not be doing any of the work here. They merely act as chains or
ropes.
The Clean-Squat-Press is a complex made up of the three movements it’s named
after. The Clean must be performed explosively, but depending on what you’re
training for and how much weight you’re hoisting; the Squat will be either very
fast or explosively slow. The Press can either be a standing Military Press or a
Push Press. The Military Press calls for a solid body and supreme tension,
especially at heavier weights. Though your upper body, from your gut to your
hands, is doing most of the work, strong legs and a rock-hard core are essential
to grinding the weight up. The Push Press allows you to drop into a
quarter-squat before powering the weight up with your hips.
The Muscle-up is an outstanding movement all on its own, and is one of the most
holistic and beneficial upper body movements you can perform. Though it sounds
simple enough, perform a pullup and then immediately do a dip on either rings or
a pullup bar, the movement itself is much more difficult and may require time
set aside in either the warm-up or the cool-down to practice. The extremely
difficult transition between the pullup and the dip makes this exercise greater
than either exercise alone. In fact, if you can’t perform at least 10 pullups
and 10 dips, don’t even think about trying the Muscle-up. If you’re a climber,
a military combatant, or a police officer, you absolutely need to learn this
skill. For more on the muscle up, check out this article by Tyler Haas at
http://www.powerathletesmag.com/pages/muscleup.htm
Since we’re training intelligently by focusing on movements and not muscles, we
can repeat these movements over and over again without too much strain on the
body. In fact, swings alone can be performed nearly every day, as long as you
vary the intensity of the workout every day. While kettlebells for the swings,
sandbags or barbells for the thrusters, and gymnastics rings for the muscle-ups
will provide outstanding variety in your training, as well as hitting most of
the stabilizer muscles in your body, anyone can make do with just a couple of
dumbbells and a pullup bar. You should be able to execute any good workout
routine for general physical preparedness and fat loss nearly anytime and
anywhere with minimal equipment.
Why? Because that puts you in a “No Excuses” mentality. Gym’s closed today?
Good. Time to train outdoors! It’s thunder storming outside? Oh well. Time to
workout in the garage! Garage is full of cars and useless junk? You get the
idea.
For strength and focus days or routines, try the following three days a week:
Heavy Swings (or double swings with two lighter dumbbells/kettlebells): 5×5
Alternate with
Clean-Squat-Press: 4×5
Follow with Muscle-ups: 5×5
Or
Weighted Pullups: 5×5
Alternate with
Weighted Dips: 4×5
Rest about 90 seconds between each set, since you’re alternating the lifts, and
rest 3-5 minutes between the Clean-Squat-Presses and the Muscle-ups. Do not go
to failure on any of the lifts, and always keep a few reps in the bank. If you
haven’t yet developed the muscle-up, after you’re finished, grab either the
pullup bar or the rings and practice jumping muscle-ups. If you really feel that
your chest needs more work, feel free to crank out a 5×5 of either one-armed
pushups or Spetsnaz Pushups (one-armed, one-legged pushups with opposite limbs).
If you can’t perform either of those movements, simply hold the top position of
each for 5-10 seconds per “rep”, rest a few seconds, and then repeat with the
other arm.
On the off days, 1-2 rounds of Tabata Sprints (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off, 8
times total per round) will help keep your conditioning at a decent level.
For Metabolic Conditioning (aka Met-Con) and fat loss, keep your diet in check
and try this out.
Warm-up: Joint Mobility work, some medium-paced bodyweight squats, and a few
Jumping Muscle-ups (simply do a Muscle-up, but jump up to help you get above the
bar)
20 seconds: Pullups
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Dips
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Pullups
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Dips
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Clean-Squat-Press
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Clean-Squat-Press
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Sprint
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Swings
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Sprint
10 seconds: Rest
20 seconds: Swings
10 seconds: Rest
A few notes on the exercises: If you cannot do sprints due to space limitations
simply do regular squats with no weight. Concentrate on proper form. Drive
through your heels, keep your back flat or slightly arched, get your butt to the
ground, and keep your eyes forward. For the pullups, do not try strict reps. Use
your hips in a kipping motion to get yourself above the bar. Remember, we’re
going for conditioning, not strength.
You’ll notice that this workout is only five minutes long. There’s a reason for
that. Those 20 seconds should be balls-to-the-wall, maximum or near-maximum
intensity. This is also why you only perform this routine 3 days a week. If you
really feel like you need more work, simply repeat this workout 2-3 times, for a
total of 10-15 minutes respectively. If you can handle the mental challenge, and
you’ll find out quickly what a challenge it can be, tally up all of your reps on
every exercise (except the sprints, of course) and add them up. The next time
you do this workout, simply beat your previous score. Don’t try to do this every
single time or you’ll burn out fairly quickly, but try to get a new Personal
Record one out of every three to four times you do this.
Elite level athletes can knock out 5×5 Muscle-ups, stack 135lbs on a barbell for
the Squat-Clean-Press, then grab two 88lb kettlebells (or 90lb dumbbells) for
swings. Beginner’s can use jumping pullups and jumping dips (or stretch bands
hook to the bars) before working up to jumping Muscle-ups, a broomstick for the
Squat-Clean-Press, and a 10lb dumbbell for the swings.
The possibilities for scalability to suit any and all fitness levels really are
limited only by you.
That’s it! Three powerful movements to help create a fully functional body
that’s ready for just about anything life throws at it.
As usual, it’s Intense, Varied, Functional, and Fun. If you don’t have all four
in your training, you’re doing something wrong! Especially the Fun part. Life’s
way too short to do boring routines.
If you’re up to the Atomic Challenge, give it a try and feel free to send
feedback to Eric@ForceFocusFitness.com
RESOURCE BOX: Eric Cimrhanzel is a fitness trainer in College Station, TX, and
works mostly with U.S. Military Officer Candidates and college students. His
training philosophy of Intense, Varied, Functional, and Fun has been called
“brutally effective”, he has been nicknamed “The ultimate ‘black box’ trainer”,
and is highly recommended by trainers, military personnel, and students alike
for programs designed to give you the best results possible in the shortest
amount of time. He is available for online program design as well as private and
semi-private sessions in College Station.
