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Do you think it’s a viable strategy to scale the 9 minute challenge to a solo program by increasing the 3x3 minute timer to say 3x8-10 minutes? Or would you rather include other movements or programming as well?

It is a supplemental program to your main workout to give you a good foundation for whatever else you are doing by concentrating on a fundamental movement pattern.
 
Do you think it’s a viable strategy to scale the 9 minute challenge to a solo program by increasing the 3x3 minute timer to say 3x8-10 minutes? Or would you rather include other movements or programming as well?
Hello,
Tim Anderson wrote a book about this. „The Bulletproof Project“ is all about choosing 2-5 tasks and work up doing them each for 10 minutes. I like and recommend it.
 
Hi all;

I couldn’t find a thread about Aleks Salkin’s 9 minute KB and BW challenge. It is a free challenge with a nice documentation especially for a free content. Aleks Salkin - Aleks Salkin

I have no correlation w Aleks Salkin, most probably we will never meet w him in person or even ever talk.

Its’s a challenge that you do some fundamental exercises daily for 9 minutes in total.

I have been doing this challenge for a week now, and I wanted to share my initial observations.

This is a program that fits in to some of SF teaching and principals very well.

It’s in my opinion a very successful minimalist program. The exercises are carefully selected, they don’t tax you at all (you could do any exercise to absolute failure and exhaustion with in 9 minutes but training to exhaustion HIT style is not this program’s intention for obvious reasons to SF followers)

I think there is a magic in it self of daily repeated exercises, especially when you do a select few exercises. Because you see amazing fast progress without even forcing yourself. I believe this is the beauty of minimalist programs. This is not a thread about minimalism, and yes there are many other flows or movement programs that involves much more number of exercises and hence so called cover all your aspects, this one is not trying to be an answer to all your problems. But while not trying to cover everything, it indeeds cover “ a lot “ because let you get polish your most basic moves over and over again without effort.

This program started to improve my fundamental movement patterns and even mobility of my problematic over head shoulder ROM only in a week. If you consider how little effort I put in to it, and I am putting zero brain cells in to it :) this is quite an achievement.

Are there any one out there who tried this challenge ? What are your experiences and thoughts on this one.

I think it improves your mobility, the way u move, and your strength in a beautiful way.
Thanks for posting this. I'll be adding this in starting today.
 
@AleksSalkin
I saw someone here mentioned 6 point crawl / leopard crawl.... also clearly marching involves pumping the arms as well...
Does the form matter a whole lot? Or is it just the doing of it?
 
@AleksSalkin
I saw someone here mentioned 6 point crawl / leopard crawl.... also clearly marching involves pumping the arms as well...
Does the form matter a whole lot? Or is it just the doing of it?

Hi Ted;

I believe in general form matters a lot in those type of fundamental moves. When I say form I mean to do the moves in a relaxed but controlled manner until you re-learn how to move.

When it comes to which form of crawling or carry or deadbug etc you do, does not matter in the beginning. Doing the basic ones starting from easy regressions and moving up slowly is what we beginners need in my opinion. If we grove out of a specific move (which will take some time) I believe we will be competent enough how to make one given variety more challenging , either by loading it or by graduating to a more complex one.

If you are comfortable w 6 point but not leopard , start w 6 point until it becomes easy.

If your form is not good w leopard, or you are very tense, don’t bother w leopard. In my opinion for now.
 
I must be missing something. I don't recall a discussion of the different movements

I might have misunderstood your question.

My experience is, I am trying to stick to a strict form, and slow movements as much as possible, it seems as if working for me. I attribute this to being a beginner.
 
I think a possible regression for deadbugs is the following (doesn't include the gait pattern though), demonstrated by Tim Anderson:


How do you go about the single arm single KB carries - set the timer and switch hands trying to get 90 seconds per hand? Or 3 min per hand?
 
I think a possible regression for deadbugs is the following (doesn't include the gait pattern though), demonstrated by Tim Anderson:


How do you go about the single arm single KB carries - set the timer and switch hands trying to get 90 seconds per hand? Or 3 min per hand?

So what I have been doing is to walk around my block, about 120 yards. I grab my 48kg bell and walk X amount of feet, put the bell down and switch hands. The time in between the hand switch is seconds. I'll start my stop watch and do my 120 yards. When I'm done I'm usually at 3:20ish. That's good enough for me. The extra 20ish seconds I figure is the time between switching hands. When I do dead bugs or crawling I set my phone timer for 4 minutes. The extra minute covers down on my rest periods, that I keep pretty brief.
 
When I do dead bugs or crawling I set my phone timer for 4 minutes. The extra minute covers down on my rest periods, that I keep pretty brief.
Thank you for the 4min timer idea! I used it this morning for deadbugs and crawling and it's great. Dropped into the basement following those 8 minutes for 5x5 double KB cleans, squat/presses on 60s rest, and finished with 3 min alternating hands for the carries. Perfect way to start the day.
 
That's a good question. I think you could certainly do that, but if you're going to do it as a stand-alone program you may want to include some more work for the posterior chain, like something for the upper back (think rows, face pulls, pullups) and maybe a lower body pull like swings.

Come to think of it, if you want to stay the minimalist route, something like high pulls would be the best of both worlds since that would hit the glutes/hams as well as the upper back.

Also, I would consider working your way up bit by bit - so work your way toward 3x5 minutes, then 3x8 minutes, then eventually 3x10 minutes

I was thinking it would pair perfectly with Simple and Sinister.
 
@AleksSalkin
I saw someone here mentioned 6 point crawl / leopard crawl.... also clearly marching involves pumping the arms as well...
Does the form matter a whole lot? Or is it just the doing of it?
Form definitely matters, but it's relatively straight forward. Here's a video covering the form for both crawling and marching (and if you're crawling on your knees, it will look pretty much exactly the same save for having your knees on the ground):
 
Do you think it’s a viable strategy to scale the 9 minute challenge to a solo program by increasing the 3x3 minute timer to say 3x8-10 minutes? Or would you rather include other movements or programming as well?
That's a good question. I think you could certainly do that, but if you're going to do it as a stand-alone program you may want to include some more work for the posterior chain, like something for the upper back (think rows, face pulls, pullups) and maybe a lower body pull like swings.

Come to think of it, if you want to stay the minimalist route, something like high pulls would be the best of both worlds since that would hit the glutes/hams as well as the upper back.

Also, I would consider working your way up bit by bit - so work your way toward 3x5 minutes, then 3x8 minutes, then eventually 3x10 minutes
 
Thank you for the 4min timer idea! I used it this morning for deadbugs and crawling and it's great. Dropped into the basement following those 8 minutes for 5x5 double KB cleans, squat/presses on 60s rest, and finished with 3 min alternating hands for the carries. Perfect way to start the day.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it! That's the perfect way to use the challenge, too.
 
So what I have been doing is to walk around my block, about 120 yards. I grab my 48kg bell and walk X amount of feet, put the bell down and switch hands. The time in between the hand switch is seconds. I'll start my stop watch and do my 120 yards. When I'm done I'm usually at 3:20ish. That's good enough for me. The extra 20ish seconds I figure is the time between switching hands. When I do dead bugs or crawling I set my phone timer for 4 minutes. The extra minute covers down on my rest periods, that I keep pretty brief.
Nicely done, my man. 48 kg carries are no joke
 
@AleksSalkin I have been following Original Strength for a while now and recently started doing 10 minutes of crawling (loaded and bw) every morning after some Resets. I then do my regular training later in the day.

I really like the look of the 9 Minute Challenge and I am thinking about swapping the crawling with the big 4. Couple questions

1. Is marching in place an ok alternative to marching for distance? I dont have a lot of room.

2. Would you suggest not adding load to the crawling until the 3 minutes becomes easy at BW or would alternating loaded and unloaded be acceptable? Would require more breaks for loaded obviously.

3. Do you suggest varying the carries as much as possible or sticking to 1 or 2 and working those

Thanks man!!
 
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