A Rope and a Kettlebell - One Serious Workout!

If you want to take your fitness level to another dimension then this article is just for you! All you need is a moderately heavy bell and a solid rope that is about inch to an inch and a half in diameter and at least 20 feet long. To execute this exercise drill you will need sufficient open and flat space to pull it off. Tie the rope securely to the kettlebell. Make sure you are in a place where there is nothing and no one to around to get hit by you when you are attempting this drill.

To solidly execute this drill all you have to do is start swinging the bell with the rope around in a circle. Hold the rope firmly with both arms and use your body as the pivot point of the drill. Execute up to 3 swings and let go of the rope to allow the bell to propel as far away from you as possible. Make sure that for each throw you release the bell at the same point every time. As soon as the bell hits the ground pull it with rope as fast as you can back to you. Essentially you are swinging it in a circle for 3 full rotations and letting go. Then you are immediately reeling it in, as soon as, it hits the ground. Make sure to switch directions on your rotation with every throw. This drill will significantly build your strength and cardiovascular fitness.

The key is to make sure you take precautions to not injure yourself and anyone else when you decide to implement this drill. Practice frequently and flawlessly!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Power Breathing - A Technique to Immediately Improve Your Strength!

I have often been asked by people about the proper way to breathe when they lift weights. I say that they are concentrating on the breathing too much if they have to ask about it, unless they are lifting super heavy weights. The truth is that whenever you exert yourself with an external load the body naturally reacts in a number of different ways to support that weight. Muscles tense up and you generally hold your breath most of the time without really thinking about it.

This phenomenon of holding your breath when exerting yourself is known as power breathing or a more scientific term for it is the valsalva maneuver. Basically any kind of lifting or resistance form of exercise is known as anaerobic exercise which means without oxygen. Essentially when you naturally tension the body by it having to support an external load there is a natural reaction of sort of holding your breath in order to support the heavy load. Does this actually work? The answer is YES. You actually become stronger by implementing this technique during times of high exertion.

Now having said it works there is a certain way for this technique to be done to be more effective. First of all, if I am lifting a heavy weight I don't want to inhale to completely fill my lungs with oxygen like a hot air balloon. To do this the right way I need to take oxygen in and, at the same time, push some out by tightening my diaphragm. In other words, imagine how you would push air through your windpipe between your tongue and palette. It should almost make a "hissing" sound kind of like a snake. When you do this you will find that your abdomen will really tighten up. This abdominal tension is what gives you an amazing amount of support throughout your core and entire body thereby enabling you to support more weight!

The truth is that this technique is widely used among power lifters, olympic lifters, and all kinds of strongmen across the globe. You can use it too to boost your strength levels. Practice and you will see that it will work like magic!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Training With Kettlebells - The Benefits of This Ancient, But Hugely Dynamic Method of Training!

Being a strength and conditioning specialist and having years of experience with training athletes and hardcore fitness enthusiast I have a real understanding of how the body works. You see your body is simply a machine that consists of levers and pulleys that produce a series of actions that we define as human movement. I like to use the term "Human Dynamic" to describe this art of movement.

In order for you to get a grasp of what I am talking about as far as the human dynamic you have to train with a kettlebell. This is an ancient form of training that has always been years ahead of it's own time! In order to be truly fit you must try to optimally improve on many characteristics that make up what we consider as overall fitness. Traits such as flexibility, strength, cardiovascular conditioning, resiliency, stamina, and athletic performance all encompass this level of human ability we call fitness. The special design of the bell and the learned technique of such lifts like the swing, the overhead snatch, and the one-arm turkish getup all create a series of natural and basic movements that the human body is meant to perform. The bell makes these movements even more beneficial because they are performed with the added resistance of the kettlebell.

In order to improve your fitness you have to move your body. With the kettlebell there is no better way to move and, at the same time, apply a weighted resistance. The benefits of using this device are off the chart! If you haven't started then you need to start your kettlebell training now!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Living Room Fitness - 2 Huge Total-Body Exercises You Can Perform Right in Your Living Room!

I want to start by saying that you don't have to worry about buying a gym membership or fighting traffic getting to the gym in order to get into shape! If you know anything about true fitness then you know that a great portion of it can be obtained by manipulating your very own body-weight. Take a minute to learn how you can include the following 2 exercises into your personal fitness program.

1. The Burpee: This is a tremendous exercise that is an intense calisthenic. It is a great way for you to optimally utilize your own body-weight in order to make huge fitness gains! To begin the drill you will want to stand with your feet about shoulder width distance apart in length. From here you will want to squat down to place your hands on the ground in front of you. Next, kick your feet back behind you until your body is extended and you are in a standard upright push-up position. From this position perform a push-up. Finally, kick your feet back up under your body and stand up. All of these movements equal a single burpee. If you get really good at these attempt to perform 50 in a row without stopping. This is serious fat-loss and cardiovascular conditioning drill!

2. Alternate Hand Position Plyo-Push-Ups: To begin this drill get on the floor into an upright push-up position. The only detail here is to make sure that your hands are slightly narrower than shoulder width distance in length. Start with your hands in this narrower position and go down to perform a standard push-up. Upon you ascending in the push-up explosively push yourself hard enough so that your hands come off of the ground. This time when your hands come back to the floor allow the placement of your hands to be wider than shoulder width distance. This will give you a different hand placement position. Continue to perform the push-ups alternating your hand position every time. You will quickly see how this in home training program will become a serious body construction program!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

If You Are Looking to Lose Weight Then Start Here!

Weight-loss seems to be a major topic for many people these days. Everywhere I look I see some ad about the next best diet, weight-loss pill, or exercise device that is going to get me a pair of six pack abs and get it fast. Well, the truth is that I already have a six pack set of abs and it never came at the result of any pill! It takes discipline, consistency, and an efficient strength and conditioning program.

The fact is that you can forget about all of those ads. You may wonder then why should I listen to you Brandon and not all of those other people. I'll tell you why. The reason is that right now I'm not selling you anything. I'm GIVING you information completely free of charge. Not just any information, but information from an expert that has had many years of experience and education in the business of building bodies for both athletes and the hardcore fitness enthusiast. Just trust me on this one. I know what I'm talking about!

If you are going to lose any weight and achieve any noticeable result worth talking about to your friends and family you have to have a startup plan. If you are not use to exercising then just simply get in the habit of getting off of the couch and moving around. Don' t worry about what you should or shouldn't be doing, just do it! Of course, don't be stupid and try something that could injure you, but besides that get busy. Start by walking, jumping rope, doing push-ups, light jogging, or carrying a heavy sandbag around in your front yard. Remember that you don't have to be fancy and be the "guru" on training, you just need to have the proper motivation and attitude on fitness for you to get the results. The sooner you get started the better. Once you get in the habit of starting up then you can worry about fine-tuning your training to get faster results. Start this way, then you can ask me about starting with the kettlebells!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Frequency and Intensity - The Keys to Weight-Loss

If you have ever wondered how to get results from your personal fitness and exercise program then you need to understand that there are certain variables involved to make your venture a success. The way to make sure your program is a success is to make sure you are putting the necessary time and the necessary work into your training.

1. Frequency: I would suggest that you try to get your training in at least three days a week. You can go everyday of the week so long as you really know what you are doing, but there is nothing wrong with even practicing certain movements as push-ups and planks most days of the week. If you give yourself a days rest between workouts this is a good start to varying your training days.

2. Intensity: Even if you are getting a good three days a week with your workouts they aren't going to amount to much unless you understand how to properly stress the body to get an intense experience. I would even say that drastic cosmetic results will not be obtained unless you are taking your body to a moderately high to high level of exertion. Remember that you would even be better off only doing one or two days a week of high intensity workouts rather than doing three or four leisure days. This is where your fat-loss and weight-loss will occur more rapidly. Just make sure you are keeping your strength and fitness training varied. This is what will ensure your success when training with proper intensity!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

A Kettlebell Grip is a Powerful One - 2 Exercises to Get an Iron Grip!

If you have worked with the kettlebells then you understand exactly where I am coming from when I talk about grip exhaustion. I don't even know if that phrase exist. Anyway, the bell will give you an iron grip quicker than just about anything out there. A quick way to find out is to practice with this device on a regular basis. If you were wondering what it takes for those strongmen to rip phone books in half and bend nails, then you have found the ingredient right here in the kettlebell. Check out these following 2 drills that you can include into your personal strength culture!

1. Dual Kettlebell Farmer's Walk: This is one of those tough looking drills that you have seen strongmen perform on ESPN. They generally use anvils, but the bell will work just fine for you. This is a wonderful strength and conditioning exercise that you can perform right in your front or back yard. To start, just find a flat open area. Stand at one end of the walking area and squat to pick up your kettlebells in each hand. A relatively strong guy can start with a 28kg (61.6 lbs) kettlebell in each hand. A relatively strong woman can start with a 16kg (35.2 lbs) kettlebell in each hand. From here you just simply want to walk for a designated distance of about 25 yards one way. Repeat this two or three times and you will be ripping phone books in no time!

2. Dual Kettlebell Swings: So you are probably familiar with the double-arm kettlebell swing by now. With the double-arm kettlebell swing you are using both arms to swing a single bell back and forth between your legs. Now we are going to step it up by executing dual kettlebell swings. With this particular drill you will be performing swings with a kettlebell in each hand. To begin, you will make sure that your technique is sound and that you are using bells of equal weight to swing in each hand. You will quickly find that the swings are much more intense this way from a conditioning standpoint as well. You must fight hard to keep a good hooking type grip in order to prevent the bells from flying out of your hands and through your living room wall. Note, its always a good idea to do these outdoors and in the grass.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Kettlebell Performance Lifts - 2 Lifts to Execute With Kettlebells to Increase Your Vertical Jump!

This is not the type of workout to put forth any half effort! If you really want the increase in performance by increasing your athletic explosive ability to improve your vertical jump then this is just for you! The kettleblell is a great tool for applying great total-body tension which is the key ingredient for building strength and power. Different parts of the body can be more emphasized than other parts, but the bell is the master of generating that total-body strength and conditioning.

1. The Overhead Snatch: If you are not familiar with this particular lift then you need to do your homework! This particular lift is the kettlebell version of the Olympic snatch lift. For the purpose of this article I am referring to executing a single arm overhead snatch. This lift is explosive and promotes serious shoulder stability, core strength, hip strength, and overall explosive vertical mobility! This lift trains your body in a highly effective manner by stimulating the nervous system causing your body to develop that athletic explosiveness that is necessary for increasing your vertical jump. You can perform this lift by doing intense weight working more on training your power, or by testing your endurance and doing a high volume of repetitions.

2. The Jerk: Just like the traditional barbell Olympic lift the same lift can be executed with the kettlebells. This is a slightly different variation because you are dealing with having to stabilize a kettlebell in each arm. Each side has to be more independently stabilized to optimally execute the lift. As you clean the bells to your chest from the floor you have to then explosively utilize the hips to drive forward getting the bells vertical and locked out above your head. This is another great lift to improve you vertical jumping ability.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Runner's Strength - If You Are a Serious Runner Then You Need a Serious Strength Program!

I have often been approached by runners that have asked what they could do to better their running program. It is an old school mindset of many runners that they should solely concern themselves with only running for distance to improve their distance and time it takes for them to run it. This is not the case when we are talking about human performance.

To start, the only thing that will enhance any athlete is a highly effective strength and conditioning program. Now when I say strength you probably assume that I mean weightlifting and when I say conditioning you are probably thinking that I am talking about the distance running that you are already participating in. I am not necessarily referring to either one of these. The fact is that an effective strength and conditioning program is one that consists of both variables that can be tied into many forms of RESISTANCE. The resistances that you put on your body such as utilizing your own body-weight, free-weights, kettlebells, or medicine balls all contribute to the overall scope of your total body fitness. This is what will drastically aid you in improving your current running, jogging, or cardio-endurance program. I have to say that it certainly takes more than just running to improve your running. However, if your program is properly planned and structured the good news is that it shouldn't take additional time to accomplish this either.

To close, if you plan an effective strength and conditioning program then you can no doubt enhance your running strength and endurance. It can even be done by not spending as much time running as you take now.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Cycling Circuit - A Superior Circuit For the Cyclist to Improve Every Level of Human Performance!

I have trained many athletes in the past and they all have the words "sports specific" embedded in their heads. This is becoming more of a mindset of the past. The truth is that ANY successful athlete must try to optimize every level or aspect of the human performance spectrum like strength, power, flexibility, endurance, resiliency, recovery, and mental focus. This can be done with the scope of the program designed for the overall emphasis of building endurance, while readily increasing the development of all of the other areas.

To start, the structure of this circuit is rather simple. It is 2 versions with the first version being done early on in the week with the second at the end of the week. It involves the rotation of 5 resistance training exercises executed in continuous fashion with intervals on either a stationary cycle, rowing machine, or other type of aerobic cardiovascular device of your choice. The 5 resistance training exercises must all be free-weighted and multi-joint type exercises. The second version is structured exactly like the first, with a couple of exceptions. The first is that the 5 resistance training exercises are all dynamic in nature and should involve nothing but your own body-weight. Some good examples would be squat thrusts, squat jumps, and push-ups. Also the intervals of cardio in this circuit are to be done on nothing but the cycle. The rep count should be at 25 reps on the resistance training movements and the time on the cardio should include high intensity intervals of 3-5 minutes. Circuits can be repeated for as many rounds as you desire.

This is one circuit that will help you to develop some serious fitness to allow you to shatter your old time records on the cycle. It doesn't matter if you are a serious or recreational cyclist this program will enhance your abilities on the bike!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Body-Fat Destruction - Find Some Outdoor Space and Give This Workout a Try!

To start, I hope you don't mind training outdoors. This program will require a bit of space and at least 50 yards of straight flat terrain. Any flat grassy outdoor space will work. You would be good to find a high-school football field, local park, or if your back yard is big enough then you don't have to go anywhere my friend!

Put on a good pair of running shoes and get ready to get sweaty and miserable! Mark off a 50 yard distance as the ground that you will be covering. The next step that you will take will be to execute a different exercise every 10 yards progressing all the way to the end of the 50 yard marker. This is where you have to get a little creative. Remember that every 10 yards you have to change the exercise you are doing. Don't be afraid to mix it up.

For instance, you can start out doing bear crawls and then pop-up and transition into the next 10 yards doing high knee runs. You can see how quickly the pattern starts to get challenging. Even if you can't get creative enough to change every 10 yard mark then feel free to alternate the 2 exercises that I have mentioned in this article. This is a hard-hitting training regimen that will help you to develop some serious endurance, to lose serious body-fat, and to get your body's metabolism running in high gear like a big diesel Ford Truck pulling some wide load down the freeway.

Always be willing to learn and to be creative with your training. If you run out of creativity and become stagnant then so will your fitness training program.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Compound Movements - Don't Sweat the Small Stuff When it Comes to Training Your Body!

It really amazes me when I have gone into gyms in the past and I see some overweight woman with a trainer and the trainer is having her do standing arm curls for her workout. The crazy thing is that the client is generally carrying on a conversation throughout the set of curls. As a strength and conditioning specialist and professional trainer the scene I just described is both laughable and absolutely ridiculous!

Its as if people don't know how or are scared to actually "WORKOUT." I have seen this situation as I described above on many occasions. The bottom line is that the client should be raising her level of perceived exertion, and the arm curls that were easy enough for her to tell her trainer the story about her sons' graduation just doesn't cut it. This logic should go for everyone, especially if you are on a time crunch and really want to get an effective workout. Instead of worrying about targeting your arms by doing curls and cable tricep extensions do push-ups and pull-ups instead. If you don't have the strength to do push-ups or full pull-ups then modify them. It takes a little creativity to be successful at anything in life and working out is no different. I'm not telling you that you have to be an expert and write a book on fitness or anything like that, but just put forth a little effort. At least get yourself enough out of breath to be able to say afterwards that you did something!

Get a little creative, but forget the single-joint lifts like extensions and curls. Kill more than one bird with one stone. Engage in as many exercises that hit multiple muscles at once as you can possibly come up with.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Complete Fitness - A Reminder of Our True Human Roots!

If you really want to know the reason for our physiological development we can break down the true reason of our PHYSICAL nature into two basic tasks. The two main tasks that we are designed for in terms of our physical abilities involve doing work and to reproduce to preserve the race. Now I'm not a Darwinian, nor am I even trying to get into to that conversation, but we are going to look at how the human environment has changed over time in terms of its influence on our state of health and well-being.

You see if you read the history books and look at yester-year it doesn't take a genius to figure out that we didn't have H2 Hummers, Publix Grocery Stores, and the internet to get stuff done. Getting something to eat wasn't as simple as driving down to the grocery to get a loaf of bread. You see man had to hunt for his food and women would handle a lot of the gathering of the goods. It was a team effort of high physical exertion, will, and determination. The human motivation then was survival and not worrying about whether or not your wife is going to be upset with you for getting real butter instead of the low-cholesterol stuff. It wasn't driving to the grocery, it was more like trekking through the woods and spearing a deer. Back then there was probably not a lot of weight issues, heart disease, and size 0 dresses. It was all powerful physical human ability. Humans did physically what they were meant to do.

Now lets fast-forward to today. Life is still a challenge, but the challenges are different. We still have to hunt our food in a way, but not with a spear. We do it from behind a desk sitting at a cubicle to earn a check to pay for the food that was obtained for us. So we don't have to necessarily hunt for the food, but in turn we have brought on a wide range of health issues from our bodies not being used properly. This is where true fitness is so important. It is a way to mimic the activities that we as a race used to engage in.

This is why we should try to achieve true fitness. Everyday is now a fight to not lose what we were originally blessed to do!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

How to Design a Strength Program For You!

So I'll pose the question: How do I design an effective strength and conditioning program? This is a very good question. I'll get to the answer in a second, but I first want to say that even though there is a science and reasonable amount of logic involved in designing strength and fitness programs it is not an exact science. Now to answer your question I'm going to ask a question. What are your goals or what is the end result as it applies for the design of the program? This has everything to do with the result of your strength and conditioning program.

For starters, I would set up a program for a golfer in a different way than I would approach an NFL linebacker. Now having said that I still have a set program that incorporates the same lifts and techniques for the golfer as I would have for the linebacker. The only adjusted variable would be the volume of intensity, but I still expect to make the golfer as strong and fit as possible! Olympic weightlifting and kettlebell training have both been proven to be a huge and essential component in the production and achievement of optimal fitness and athletic performance. Knowing this you have a good gauge to know where to start in terms of your own training program.

Like I said, whether you are a golfer or a football player you need to be as optimally fit and strong as you can be in order to effectively compete in your sport! This also applies to everyday people who want to just simply get into shape. I have posed the question to friends in the past who wanted to get into shape and asked them at what part of their life did they feel they were in the best shape and the answers are all the same. They replied that it was when they played ball either in high school or college. In other words, it was their athletic past.

With this kind of response logic would say to train like an athlete would train. This is true as long as the person starting back approaches this with sound judgement and competent knowledge. So if you are going to design a strength program ask yourself what the goal or end result is. From here look into competently and with professional advice look into implementing variations of dynamic movements like Olympic and kettlebell lifting. Once you do this then simply go from there. Fine tune and use your own personal experience as to what works over time. You will get into the best shape of your life this way!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Kettlebell Training and Safety

To train with kettlebells means that you will pound your body into shape from every core strengthening swing you execute! However, if you are not careful you can destroy a lot of property and injure yourself or someone else. The key to training with kettlebells is to just use common sense. Check out the following safety tips you can implement to ensure your safety.

I would recommend training outdoors with kettlebells on an open grassy area if possible. This is the best environment for kettlebell training because if you lose control of the weight you can simply let it go without worry of hurting anyone or anything. Anytime you begin dynamic movements such as swings and overhead snatches make sure no one walks in front of the arc of your swing. People don't generally use common sense and they will walk in front of you, trust me its happened to me. A kettlebell man or woman has to use common sense for everyone else. This is part of what separates you and your training from everyone else and their training! This awesome tool of fat-loss and hard body development is very effective in helping you to develop the body you have always wanted, but it must be respected.

Make sure that you are always aware of your surroundings when starting your kettlebell training program. If you are helping someone else to get started then you need to also take the time to make sure they are aware of their kettlebell responsibilities.

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

Athletic Development - A True Misconception About How the Athlete Should Build Strength!

I am here to tell you the truth about off-season strength training and total-body conditioning to maximize your performance for the next upcoming season of your sport. You don't need the fully-stocked weight-room to achieve optimal performance. The following philosophy is a proven fact and translates over ALL boundaries to ALL sports!

So you are thinking "what is he talking about?" Well the truth about building strength is easy, but you have to have a definite logical plan in your approach for your optimal performance development. You see the only way to truly get stronger is to maximize muscular tension. Tension is what builds absolute body strength. This is achieved best by engaging in lifts of 3 dimensional movements. Now when I say lifts I don't necessarily mean weights, I mean lifts that create resistance! You should always try to master different ways of handling a load rather than just handling a different load of weight.

For instance, I may be able to deadlift 500 lbs as a football player, but to truly get stronger should I continue to increase the poundage to maybe do 550 lbs? The answer to this is no. Rather than trying to improve the poundage of the DEADLIFT I would better OPTIMIZE my strength by changing to do snatches, cleans, jerks, lifting rocks, sandbags, variation animal walks, and a engaging in an arsenal of plyometric drills.

Now what I have mentioned so far can all be varied by utilizing alternative tools to traditional weights found in a weight-room. To name a few examples: your own body-weight, rocks, sandbags, buckets of water, swinging a sledgehammer, tires, and throwing heavy objects! Creativity is underrated. Any multi-planar movement will stimulate your neuromuscular system to not only adapt to a heavy load, but to adapt to MOVING that heavy load therefore giving you OPTIMAL performance!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!

The Swimmer's Secret to Success - 2 Kettlebell Drills That Would Even Impress Aquaman!

As a strength and conditioning specialist it is obvious that swimmers need a significant amount of strength and endurance. As a swimmer one must have a powerful core, strong shoulders, explosive hips, and lats that can pull hard enough to create one serious wake in the pool! I don't know if Aquaman had a land-based program, but if he did I bet it was with kettlebells! Read on and apply the following 2 drills to your current program and I guarantee you will improve your time in the water.

1. The Double-Arm Swing: This is the base lift of the kettlebell. You will need a flat open space to execute this particular drill. To start, you will want to perform a squat to pick the bell up from between your legs. Your feet should be about shoulder width distance apart in length. From here you should be standing erect with the bell hanging at your waist with your arms straight. Next, you must perform the "hip snap" motion. This involves you basically performing a quarter squat movement double flexing and extending at the hips and knees. This "back and forth" hip snap motion is the key to allowing the kettlebell to build momentum into a swinging motion from between your legs and progressing up to your chest level. Make sure that you keep your arms straight, shoulders back, and head up. Perform a couple of hundred of these with a moderately heavy weight and you will quickly see how this will help your water skills!

2. The Single-Arm Swing: Just like the double-arm swing you will want to execute the single-arm swing in the same exact way with one obvious difference. You will be executing this drill with only a single arm adding even more intensity to the exercise. To start, you can perform the double-arm swing and simply let go with one arm leaving you lifting the bell with only a single arm. You will want to make sure that you are gripping the kettlebell with your "palm" and not your "fingers." This is called a hooking grip. You will also want to make sure that you allow your hand to rotate "thumbs down" at the bottom of the swing between your legs and rotate back to a "palms down" position at the top of the swing. This is great strength training for swimmers and will also yield a high level of cardiovascular and core strength to help you dominate in the pool. Like I said this would even impress Aquaman!

To learn more about Kettlebells, Fitness, and achieving Total Mind-Blowing Strength come and visit me at: http://www.efandps.com To be one of my members and to receive more tips on INSANE BODY CONSTRUCTION please visit me at:http://www.efandps.com/www.efandps.com/Brandons_Members_Newsletter.html I'm Brandon Richey the Strength and Conditioning Pro!