Bodyweight Naked warrior effect

[conor78]

I've been re-reading the naked warrior over the festive period. Bodyweight exercise is something that I have never really approached using SF principles. That was probably due to enduring years of pushups and crunches whilst playing competitive sport. Anyhow, I've been playing about with some of the basic progressions with the pistol and one arm push up. I did 5 sets 3 of each. I did some of the stretches that K Smith recommends to help with the pistol and I need to keep using these. Afterwards I felt pretty fried and fell asleep on the couch.Do pistol and OAPU tax the cns? I feel a similar senation after heavy deadlifts.

I can't really use a GTG method with these during the day but I want to incorporate them some where into my routine.

 

[pet']

Hello,

@conor78
cns is not taxed if you religiously the gtg principle: You practice throughout the day but you stop as soon as you fail a rep (or if you feel you are likely to fail). Basically, if you are tired, you do not do. It is very "feeling bases" IMO

Otherwise, you can incorporate the progressions in your current training with good results. If I were you, I will place these progressions at the beginning of the session, while you are still fresh.

Kind regards'

Pet'

 

[Kit Meyer]

I'm personally a fan of the Bodyweight Conditioning Workout designed by Steve Maxwell and the Evil Russian himself.
Strength Aerobics: “Conditioning” Workouts That Work

If you're not used to Pistols and OAPUs, then you would feel tired because they involve full body tension like a deadlift, using plenty of neurons and muscles.

 

[Marc]

GTG would not tax the cns too much because you should always feel fresh and never go to failure.
However, I see what you mean. OAPU and Pistols are high tension exercises and you really have to concentrate while doing them and keep everything tight.
GTG is not feasible for many people including myself. However you can still practice the moves 5x/week with low volume and high tension at the beginning of each workout. Just keep your volume low enough if you do 5x/week like 5x2, 10x1, 3x3. I would say ~10 good reps per session.
If 5x is not feasible for you, you can also do 3x/week. In that case you might use a higher volume like 15-20 reps per session. Keep in mind that these numbers are just a personal recommendation. Play around aand find what works for you. Just make sure to always place pistols and OAPU at the beginning of your session to ensure maximal freshness and do not rush the rest periods between the sets.

 

[conor78]

All good advice guys, thanks for that...I'll build in some of this work at the start of my sessions. I was taken aback yesterday at how "zonked" I felt after doing them, you're right @Marc it must be the high tension element and the fact it's a new skill.GTG would be great throughout the day I work as a teacher and the pupils might find it unusual if I start incorporating one arm press ups into their numeracy lessons.)

 

[offwidth]

@conor78
My son also works as a teacher for third grade kids, so they still have recess. He goes out to the playground with them and will do pistols and pull ups and lateral flags on the monkey bars.

 

[conor78]

@offwidth ...a far cry from when teachers smoked 30 a day and had a bottle of dutch in the top drawer...fair play to him..good role model for the kids..

 

[pet']

Hello,

@conor78
A "pure" GTG is a long process. I used it in parallel from my routine when I wanted to do oaol push ups and pistols. Then I did not strictly incorporate it as an exercise in my routine. It took me almots 8 months to build both moves.

Despite this duration, motivation is crucial. Indeed, it is that progressive that sometimes one can think "it does not work" but in reality it works. It is just that one does not realize because this training approach is very different from the standard frames "x sets y reps z rest" for days a, b, c.

Exactly like S&S, I believe that not rushing is the key.

Kind regards,

Pet'

 

[Tarzan]

I've been GTG'ing levers and ab wheel rollouts for the last few weeks. I do it on days where I'm not doing a dedicated training session which often coincides with days when I'm fasting. I try to get about 70 reps of each on the days when I do it & I try to stop well before failure.

I'm at the stage where I can do a rollout on one knee with the other leg raised a bit like a one leg pushup. I'm starting to wonder if a one arm one leg ab rollout is possible. The ab roller would need to be adapted so it will work with one hand between the wheels instead of both hands on either side of them.

The potential for injury could outweigh the rewards, but with the right progressions maybe ???

 

[Matts]

@Tarzan - use a dumbbell instead of an ab roller...the kind with add-on plates, not solid (esp'ly hex..haha).

 

[305pelusa]

I'm at the stage where I can do a rollout on one knee with the other leg raised a bit like a one leg pushup. I'm starting to wonder if a one arm one leg ab rollout is possible.

The one-arm ab wheel is certainly doable (Ross Enamait comes to mind), which is much harder than the two-arm variation. I don't see how one leg would be that much harder. Most likely possible, but with a wide range of "strictness" of course.

 

[pet']

Hello,

@Tarzan

I'm starting to wonder if a one arm one leg ab rollout is possible

Yes it is possible. However, it will engage more your lats and balance. It will be the main difference. Be careful of your shoulder if you do it in a full ROM

the right progressions maybe ???

I would go for something smooth:
=> Standard ab wheel (2 arms / 2 legs)
=> Ab wheel on angled support (2 arms / 2 legs), support makes your feet higher than your hands
=> Ab wheel (2 legs / 1 arm)
=> Ab wheel (1 legs / 1 arm)

Kind regards,

Pet'

 

[Steve Freides]

I'm at the stage where I can do a rollout on one knee with the other leg raised a bit like a one leg pushup.

Standing on two legs and with two hands would be the next level, no?

The 1A1L pushup works, in part, because you can grip the ground with your hand; without that, I think there is going to be too much instability.

-S-

 

[Tarzan]

I can do 5 or 6 reps on my feet with two hands, possibly a few more if I really forced it, it's just that I don't do it that often. Three weeks ago I couldn't manage one rep on my feet, so it's progressing fairly fast.

I've been greasing the groove on one foot and one knee for a few weeks to get me into a zone where it's easy enough to do up to about 80 reps a day. On two knees is too easy and on two feet is a bit too tough for GTG for me. The added torsion of doing it on one knee and one foot adds a whole new twist to it.

I've recently started lifting one foot off the floor (while on one knee) and it was very similar to a rep with one foot and one knee on the floor in difficulty, just a bit more awkward near full extension.

I don't expect to be able to do one arm & one leg any time soon, I was just wondering if it would be possible.

 

[MikeMoran]

You could do it with this @Tarzan

The Homemade Wheel - RossTraining.com

I've been GTG'ing levers and ab wheel rollouts for the last few weeks. I do it on days where I'm not doing a dedicated training session which often coincides with days when I'm fasting. I try to get about 70 reps of each on the days when I do it & I try to stop well before failure.

I'm at the stage where I can do a rollout on one knee with the other leg raised a bit like a one leg pushup. I'm starting to wonder if a one arm one leg ab rollout is possible. The ab roller would need to be adapted so it will work with one hand between the wheels instead of both hands on either side of them.

The potential for injury could outweigh the rewards, but with the right progressions maybe ???

 

[pet']

Hello,

@Tarzan
With time, dedication and smooth progression, I think it can be achievable. However, it is also important to do a kind of "risk / benefit ratio".
Will the move make me better at what I do ? Is it worth to risk injury if this move does not help me doing something ?

As soon as you feel it can be dangerous (lack of shoulder stabilization for e.g) it can be interesting to make one step backwards, to work an easier variation, and then try again.

Kind regards,

Pet'

 

[305pelusa]

Will the move make me better at what I do ? Is it worth to risk injury if this move does not help me doing something ?

Personally speaking, I too easily suffer from costochondritis (Tetzel syndrome) during ab wheel work. It's a deep pain right at the middle of the sternum (most people feel this with dips). Apparently it's due to weak pecs, but I think it's probably a more structural issue for me since I can do Dips with my BW added, no problem. If I overdue Ring Support work, it can come back for me. Thankfully it doesn't flare at all with anything else.

Except, of course, with pullover-like motions (ab wheel, dragon flag, etc). Just thinking about doing a rep just hurts me hahaha.

It's hard to build a strong hollow position without those movements, so they definitely have a lot of reward. But for some of us, just not meant to be.

 

[Tarzan]

Thanks for that link @MikeMoran , I've been thinking about making a roller similar to the one on that page.

Thanks for the suggestion about the OS rocking too, it's helping me with my hips and some thoracic mobility issues that I should have worked on years ago. I didn't expect to do anything for my thoracic zone but there's a lot of popping and cracking going on when I rock and it feels like it's loosening something up in there.

@305pelusa I had something similar to what you've described (Tetzel syndrome) for years. Mine seemed to settle down in my mid thirties and it doesn't bother me much any more. I'm not sure why, maybe the nerve endings adapted or lost sensitivity. It's hard to imagine you have weak pecs after all that planche work you've done.

 

[D-Rock]

@conor78 I have experienced that too, where pistols as more of a condensed training session with sets and reps knocks me out. When used as GTG, not so much.

@305pelusa
At one point I suffered from "costochondritis". Severe pain that felt like my sternum was splitting apart when doing dips, inconsistently with bench press and pushups, and progressing to where I couldn't even run or roll over in bed without pain. Doctor said I was hypermobile because of weak pecs. I KNEW I did not have weak pecs. But I did the prescribed exercises. Several doctor appointments, NSAIDs, side-effects, and a physical therapist later and I was worse! Therapist took one look at me and said "you are not too mobile, with all that muscle you are too tight!" Complete opposite end of the spectrum, but more believable. I was not flexible at all. However, weeks of intense therapy and no pain relief made a very confused therapist. Until one day he gave me yet another stretch and I felt tingling down my arm. I told him. "Hmmm, try to look at the ceiling..." I couldn't, and the effort reproduced my sternum pain. It was a pinched nerve.

3 months of severe pain was relieved by 20 chin tucks.

 

[Tarzan]

I been doing GTG levers and ab rollouts again today. My ab roller has two wheels & the handles are a poor fit on the axle so they almost slip off quite often. I've been meaning to fix them but never got around to it.

Anyway, I took the handles off and slid the wheels to each end of the axle and made it like the one in the link above from @MikeMoran . As expected I can't do a one handed rollout let alone one on one leg & one arm.

I can get about 3/4 of the way down with my right arm & about 2/3 of the way down with my left on my knees, so I might make a better single handed roller & set up a ramp & start on some progressions. I might get there in a year or three.