Use This Old School Method to Burn More Fat
It’s an easy to learn method, and even better, it’s easy to implement. It’s very simple, but don’t take the simplicity for granted. While it’s simple, it’s highly powerful!
I’ve personally used it to break plateaus, and I’ve used it with my private clients as well. Let’s get into this method so that if you’ve hit a plateau, or you just want to crank up your fat burning efforts, you can start experimenting with it today.
I learned this method when I was powerlifting. I competed in the Venice Beach Push/Pull Invitational in 2004 and again in 2005 (placed in the top 3 both years). In powerlifting, the name of the game is to lift/move as much weight as possible for one rep. Needless to say, you have to work on getting extremely strong by working on increasing absolute strength( total amount of force an athlete can produce).
How does getting strong apply to losing body fat? Well, I’ve written about that before but just as a quick recap, the stronger you get (absolute strength), the more overall work you will be able to produce in a given workout. A simple equation for work is (Work= Force x Distance).
Let’s do a very simple explanation of how this works. We’ll use the Squat exercise for this example. Let’s say your 1 rep max on the Squat is 100 lbs. You’d probably be able to do a 10 rep max with 60 lbs. Let’s say your Squat travels 2 feet. Then, 60 lbs of Force x 20 feet (2 feet x 10 reps) would equal 1,200 units of total work.
In theory, if you increase your Squat 1 rep max to 200 lbs, then you could probably do a 10 rep max with 120 lbs. Let’s do the math again.
Work= 120 x 20
As you can see, your total work output would double to 2,400 units.
This was just a very simple example to showcase the concept. Get stronger, and you’ll be able to increase total work output. Increase total work output in any given workout and you’ll also create a higher tax on your metabolic processes by forcing your body to burn more fuel!
Burn more fuel, lose more fat!
Now that we have the concept down, and you understand the importance of getting stronger, it’s time to learn how to get stronger!
In the mission to get strong or stronger, it’s vital to identify weak points. As they say, a chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link. Once you identify the weak link, using static holds is an old school method that works extremely well to strengthen the weak link!
What’s a static hold? The most popular example of a static hold is the Plank position. In a Plank, you’re not moving, but you sure are working! And you’ll usually feel the exercise most in your weakest muscles. For a lot of people, it will be the core/abs.
When I’ve worked with First Responders (Police, Fire, etc.) or Military personnel, especially pre academy/boot camp, I know that Push-ups will be a big part of their training, so, to make sure that their Push-ups are good to go, I spend a lot of time having them hold static positions within the range of motion (ROM)of Push-ups. Basically variations of Planks.
Static holds go beyond just Push-ups and Planks. You can use them for any exercise. Find the weak point, and spend time in that position/spot. When I do implement static holds, I like to do it at the end of a workout.
Don't forget you can get some of my best fat burning workouts free here.
Don't forget you can get some of my best fat burning workouts free here.
I can go on and on about static holds, but, I want to keep this short, so If you have any questions, or you're in the Pasadena area and you need a personal trainer, feel free to contact me. Also, with a Disqus account you can comment below.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. I want to help you succeed, because when you succeed, I succeed as a fitness coach.
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