fitness

Shape Your Body With Only A Barbell

I had a subscriber who inquired:

“Is it possible to build strength, put on muscle and burn off fat if I don’t have a power rack and I only have access to a barbell? Not even an Olympic barbell, but one of those old crappy cement filled barbell sets”

I know closely the weights this guy is pointing out. I agree nearly all of us grew up with them right? They were basically cement weights covered in plastic, and over time the plastic busted up and the cement started to get busted under remember?

I guess I’m showing my age
Anyhow…

YES! You can build strength and power with archaic equipment!

You just need somebody to teach you exactly how. Fortunately you met me. And thank heavens I just read a large amount of Dan John’s awe-inspiring “From the Ground Up”.

In this outstanding little ebook Dan John explains the “Rapid Ascent Program”, which contains three workouts:

1. Pull Move

2. Military Press

3. Front Squat

And here’s how you did the program (from his book):

“The program was incredibly simple. In the beginning, groups of four boys were given a bar. The bars were weighted from very lightit could be 25 poundsup to possibly close to 100 pounds. Each group of boys would lift one at a time, put the bar down, then the next boy would lift. The four would continually move from lifter to watcherthe bar never stopped. The three sets (explained in just a moment) would not take very longactually, at times it was hard to catch your breath in time for your next set.

The reps were very simple:

* Set #1: 8 reps

* Second set: 6 repetitions

* Third set: 4 repetitions

The goal was simple: when you got all 18 reps (8+6+4), you added weight. If you started with a bar that was too light, the next workout, you would be bumped up to the next weight and a stronger group. (Of course, actual variations could include making a whole new group with more weight, tooor whatever necessary to make the group work together).”

Looks simple doesn’t it?

That’s the upside of this program!

You don’t need a lot of equipment to build strength, muscle and power all while increasing your cardiovascular fitness and burning off pounds of fat.

What you DO need is a little “do or die” point of view. You should make a decision you certainly WANT to attain your fitness goals, then you’ll find a way to make use of whatever equipment you have available to make it happen.

I like this program because it keeps up with the DoubleYourGains’ philosophy of training movement patterns instead of a bunch of exercises. The Rapid Ascent program has a press move (military press), a pull move (power clean), a squat move (front squat) and an explosive/hamstring move (power clean).

How to carry out the “Rapid Ascent” program for cardio and fat loss:

Coach Dan highlights that you could also acquire a great cardio workout and nuke some fat:

“To “hurry up” the trainingas if it was necessary, there were times when Mr. Freeman recommended combining the Power Clean and Military Pressesone clean and one press, repeated for a total of eight reps. this was done with a lighter weight. One could also do the Front Squats after the clean and presses, too. I have only done this onceand it was an amazing cardiovascular workout.”

So if you believe you don’t have enough equipment to get into your best shape and reach your fitness goals you are incorrect. You are incorrect. You are incorrect.

As a matter of fact, you don’t even need a barbell. You can be on your way with the DoubleYourGains’ bodyweight program. You can do pullups on your door frame (for extra strong fingers) or just grab the top of a door and go to town (or a tree limb, anything you can hang from, and all that) Believe me, if THAT workout gets easy for you - you will be a certified STUD.

And, the minute you gain access to a good Olympic barbell set you can start the DoubleYourGains’ 3-5 Program.

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