Yesterday, I had the pleasure of working out with an old friend of mine and he should me a new bicep exercise to perform called “21″. If you’re looking for a good exercise for your biceps, I think you should give this one a try.

What you need:

Barbell with weights

Specifications:

3 sets with 60 second rest in between each

Each set includes 7 reps of 3 different curl positions to equal a total of 21 reps a set.

What you’re going to do:

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Grip the bar bell starting with the inner grip and hold with your arms extended down to your waist.

Begin curling up till your arms form a 90 degree angle and then go back down. Then repeat this for a total of 7 times.

Then without resting, curl the bar bell all he way up to your chest, then bring it back down to where your arms form a 90 degree angle. Repeat this for a total of 7 times.

Then without resting, bring the bar bell all the way back down to below your waist. Then curl up all the way to your chest and then back down to below your waist. Repeat this for 7 times.

After you complete all 7 reps of the 3 different curls, you’ve completed one set. Take a 60 second break or so and then do it all over again until you total 3 sets.

Give it ago and let me know what you think.

For more on muscle building workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense Muscle Building e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the body you want.

Avoid The 5 Worst Ways
To Build Muscle…

For the past week or so, I’ve been working out with a friend of mine. We are both running the half marathon in a few months together, so we’re training for that by running every other day. On the other days, I’ve been helping him with his strength training. On the days we run, we also perform some exercises to work our core or abdominal exercises. Each day we switch off picking the exercises.

So today, he wanted me to perform his 6 minute intense ab workout and I have to tell you, it was a pretty good one, so I had to share it with you. It’s basically just several different abdominal exercises you perform for 6 straight minutes. Now, learning from Jeff Cavaliere, rest for a maximum of 30 seconds after each set, however I usually only rest for maybe a good 10-15 seconds, so this workout had me sweating by the end.

You need to have a stopwatch of some sort when performing this because it’s not about how many reps you do, but how long you do the exercise for. Each exercise is performed repeatedly for 30 seconds each. There are a total of 4 different exercises, 3 of which you do for 30 seconds each and the other you do for a good 60 seconds.

Here is the 6 minute Intense Ab Workout:

Seconds:             Exercise:

0.00 – 0.30 – Crunches with knees up and your hands behind your head

0.30 – 1.00 – Crunches with your legs straight on the ground and your hands behind your head

1.00 – 1.30 – Full sit ups, but touch the ground between your feet each time you’re up at your knees

1.30 – 2.00 – Twists, Knees slightly bent and you lean back and twist from side to side. Hold a medicine ball if you can.

2.00 – 3.00 – Plank

Then you repeat this all over again for a total of 6 minutes.

Give this a go and let me know what you think.

For more on 6 pack workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense 6 Pack e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the abs you want.

10 FREE Video Coaching Lessons

to Six Pack Abs…

All those gym classes in school have really made performing push ups a complete drag. It was the same thing everyday. Down, up, down, up. I got bored of performing the regular push ups quite quickly. If you’re anything like me, you want to keep your workouts fresh and new.

Not just because it gives you a better workout, but because it keeps the workouts entertaining. Let’s face it, working out can get quite boring, especially if you’re working out alone. So I decided to learn several other ways to do push ups to not only increase the effectiveness of them, but to keep me entertained. I can up with some  push up exercise routines.

Give these Push Up Exercise Routines a try during your next workout.

Spider Man Push Up – This is one of my favorites to perform. I have no idea why, but they are just fun to do. To do the Spiderman Push Ups, you’re going to get into the regular push up stance like in the picture above. When you begin to descend down like a normal push (inhaling), you’re going to float one leg off the ground and bend 90 degrees (not up, but to the side). Then you’re going to push up as you bring your leg back to the original position (exhaling). Then, repeat with the other leg. Do this 12 times (6 per leg).

T- Push Ups – To perform the T-Push Ups you’re going to get in regular push up stance and descend (inhaling). Then, you’re going to push up (exhaling), but as you push up your going to left one arm straight up, pointing to the ceiling and hold for 2 seconds (Your body will be T shape. One hand on the ground with both arms completely extended, and the other hand reaching for the ceiling). Then, you’ll lower your arm back down to normal push position and repeat, alternating each side). Do this 12 times (6 per arm).

Feet Elevated Push Up – This push up is just like a normal push up, except you have your feet elevated on a bench, chair, box, or physio ball.Do this 12 times.

Hands Elevated Push Up – Just like the feet elevated push up, but this time your hands are elevated on a bench, chair, box, or physio ball. Using a physio ball makes them so much more challenging because you’re also working on stability, working out more muscles.

You can incorporate these different push ups into your workouts. Each one should be perform about 3 sets, for about 12 reps each. I’d recommend performing just one of these types of push ups per workout session. I’ll post more of my push up exercise routines at some other point, but for now, these are the ones I prefer to do.

For more on muscle building workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense Muscle Building e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the body you want.

Avoid The 5 Worst Ways
To Build Muscle…

Abdominal muscles are found to be very attractive, whether it’s a six pack or if you’re truly a freak of nature and have an eight pack, women seem to love it. Women also want abs, although their goal is really to have that flat, sexy stomach and not a 6 or 8 pack like men. Abs are not as difficult to get as people seem to make it.

Many seem to believe that you can only get a six pack if you’re skinny, when this is far from the truth. Anyone can have a 6 pack or a flat stomach. However, they need to have the right diet and workout plan. These are extremely important, which is why I recommend Truth About Abs for those who are looking to get rid of that belly fat and finally have a sexy stomach.

One of the hardest parts to get ripped abs is the lower abs. Normally crunches and sit-ups are ab workouts that don’t target the lower abs and if you’re anything like me, they lower part of your stomach is where most of the fat seems to be.

Here are 3 lower ab workouts to get ripped abs that I recommend you add to your abdominal workouts to help achieve the stomach you want, whether it’s a 6 pack pack or just a flat stomach.

1) Reverse Crunches – Instead of the normally crunches, you’re going to lay down on an inclined bench or just laying down on the floor is fine too. Bring your hands back behind your head and grab onto something stable. While laying down completely and your hands behind your head, holding on to something stable, bring your knees toward your chest. This is perform a reverse crunch, which works your lower abs. Then bring your feet and legs back down and repeat.

2) The Roll Out – This involves a physio ball. What you need to do is get down on your knees and place the ball in front of you with your hands on top. Then keeping your knees in place, slide your hands forward on the ball causing the ball to move forward and for it to go to your elbows. You should end with your elbows on top of the ball. Then go back to the start by rolling the ball from your elbows to your hands.

3) Reverse Ball Crunches – This is similar to the first one (Reverse Crunches), but instead you add the physio ball to the picture. Get into the same position, except you’re going to have the physio ball under your legs. Gripping the ball with your legs, bring your knees to your chest and then bring them back down and repeat. Now, when you grip the physio ball, you’re not going to pinch it using the inner part of your legs, but by placing your legs together over top the ball and pinching it between your calf muscles and hamstring muscles.

These 3 workouts are absolutely fantastic to perform as lower ab workouts to get ripped abs. Add these into your workout routine to help build up your abdominal muscles.

For more on 6 pack workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense 6 Pack e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the abs you want.

10 FREE Video Coaching Lessons

to Six Pack Abs…

Next time you workout your bicep muscles, give these 4 exercises a try, since as I have said many times before, the most effective way to build muscle is not only eating the proper foods, but a variety of workouts to perform. When you repeat the same exercises over and over again, you reach a plateau where you stop building muscle. In order to avoid this, you must perform a variety of exercises. Mix it up, don’t stick with the same routine.

One of the most popular muscles to workout are the biceps, even though they are much smaller than the triceps. The triceps are actually what makes your arms bigger, not your biceps. A tip when perform these exercises, or any exercise for that matter, concentrate on the muscle the exercise is intend for. Here is a workout routine you can perform to workout your biceps and trust me, you will feel them swell.

Exercise #1 – Chin Ups

- Chin ups, although a very popular exercise, many do not perform them correctly and therefore the workout isn’t very effective. First off, if you do not have anything to use for performing chin ups, check out Pull Up Bars.  When perform the chin ups, wrap your hands around the bar, with your finger nails facing you. Then pull yourself up off the ground until your chin reaches the bar. Then slowly lower yourself down to just before your arms lock, but be sure not to lock your arms. You should pull yourself up in 1 second, hold yourself up for 1-2 seconds and lower yourself in 4 seconds. Repeat this for about 15 repetitions or until failure. Use a weighted vest once they have become simple to perform.

Exercise #2 – Resistance Band Curls

- Using a resistance band, you will perform arm curls. To do this, take a resistance band and step on the middle of it with feet shoulder width apart. With a handle in each hand and enough resistance in the bands (adjusted by number of bands and width of feet), slowly perform an arm curl, then slowly bring it back down to where you started. Perform this for about 20 repetitions.

Exercise #3 – Alternating Rotating Dumbbell Curl

- The alternating rotating dumbbell curl allows you to focus on one arm at a time for maximum intensity. To perform this, you will need a pair of dumbbells. Stand with a dumbbell in each hand, your arms hanging straight and at your sides with your elbows tuck to your sides and with your palms facing your body. Then to start the curl slowly curl your arm up, and as the dumbbell clears your body, start to rotate it so that at the end of the movement, your palms are facing your chest. Once you lower the dumbbell back to the starting position, start curling with the next arm. Repeat this for 12 repetitions of each arm. If you can, increase weight each set.

Remember that when you are performing each exercise, each repetition focus on the bicep muscle and perform each repetition slowly for maximum intensity.

For more on muscle building workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense Muscle Building e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the body you want.

Avoid The 5 Worst Ways
To Build Muscle…

The lower abdominal muscles can be quite difficult to workout. Normal crunches just do not seem to cut it when it comes to your lower abs. Truth be told, the lower abs are very important in sculpting 6 pack abs. In order to have a 6 pack, you have to especially define your lower abdominal muscles. There are several different six pack exercises for lower abs that you can perform to do this.

I would suggest to perform these workouts 2-3 times a week with your other workouts. Try to perform a different one each workout. For example, perform one on Monday with your other exercises, then another on Wednesday, and so on. The reasons I suggested to spread them out throughout the week is because just like you are working out any other major muscle group, you do not want to stick to the same exercises. Each day, perform a new exercises, this will cause the muscles not to get used to the same exercises, causing them to work more. This is an extremely effective way to burn fat and build muscles.

Six Pack Exercises for Lower Abs – 3 Intense Abdominal Workouts

Perform on Monday, along with your other exercises for 3 sets of 15 or to failure reps.

#1) Begin by lying on the floor or an exercise mat. While lying flat on your back, raise both your legs and point them up to the ceiling as much as you can. While keeping on leg pointed up and straight, slowly lower the other leg keeping it straight until it is just above the floor and then bring it back. Repeat with the other leg. When switching legs (which one is up and which one is down), try to move both your legs at the same time.

#2) The next six pack exercise for lower abs is to begin by lying on the floor or an exercise mat. Bend your knees, so your feet are flat on the floor touching your bottom. While lying flat on the floor and your knees bent all the way, lift your feet just off the floor and bring your knees to your chest and then lower them back to the floor, but only touch the floor with your toes. Once your toes touch, bring your knees back to your chest.

#3) This is actually a new one I just learned, you can do this with a resistance band. To begin wrap the resistance band around a anchored pole/object, and bring both handles together.Lie on the floor or exercise mat on your side fasting the pole/object. Using the arm on the floor, hold your body up with your feet on top of one another. With the other hand, pull the resistance band to you keeping your body up at an angle on your side.

Bonus for the Six Pack Exercises for lower abs! Ever heard of kickboxing? I’m sure you have. Kick boxing is a highly effective workout for the lower abs. Perform Kick boxing for anywhere from 10-15 minutes.

There are plenty more exercises for the lower abs, but those are just my favorites I would like to share with you. If you really want six pack abs, it will take more than just intense abdominal workouts to make it happen. You also need to have the proper diet plan. With the proper exercises and proper diet there is no reason why you can have six pack abs!

For more on 6 pack workouts, quick recovery methods, and nutrition guidelines, refer to Vince Delmonte’s No Nonsense 6 Pack e-book in which he lays out a definite 29 week plan to carve out the abs you want.

10 FREE Video Coaching Lessons

to Six Pack Abs…

Since a Pull Up Bar or Chin Up Bar are #7 on my list of How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym, I thought I would explain why and what you can do with one.

A Pull Up bar is a great addition to your exercise equipment for working the upper body. They sell simple door attachment pull up bars which simply hand off the frame of your door without any screws and without damaging your door frame. By performing a simple pull up, you give your entire upper body an effective workout. Whether it’s your biceps, triceps, or shoulder, you’ll feel your muscles getting a good workout.

The Advantages of using a Pull Up Bar

They sell all different variations of door hanging pull up bars, which don’t require you to screw anything into the wall or door, you simply hang it over the door frame. The set up is very quick and easy. Pull up bars offer even more workouts than just a simple pull up.

Some you are able to place on the floor of the door frame and you can perform sit-ups or you can work your triceps by performing dips. A simple pull up bar gives your entire upper body a great workout with a variety of exercises.

Pull Up Bar Safety

As always before you perform any workout be sure your stretch all your muscles. Be sure to learn the proper form and technique for each exercise you perform. Without stretch or performing the exercise in the wrong form can lead to muscle injuries or at least cause a least effective workout.

With pull up bars, before performing a pull up be sure the pull up bar is secure on the door frame, if you do not do this it can result in the bar slipping off the door frame and I’m sure you can imagine what happens next.

Each pull up bar is different, some offer numerous hand positions for your pull ups and chin ups, some allow you to perform dips and sits. I personally have the Iron Gym Pull Up Bar, you can read my review of it here.

I am able to perform pull ups in three different gripping positions, I perform dips to work my triceps, sit ups to work my abs.

A Pull Up bar is a great piece of equipment to have for your home gym, like everything else of my How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym list, it adds a variety of exercises to your workouts. By mixing up your exercises, you will have much greater results.

Since a Jump Rope are #7 on my list of How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym, I thought I would explain why and what you can do with one.

We’ve all heard of jump ropes before. You see kids playing jump rope out on their drive way during the summer months having a great time. But, did you know that a jump rope is one of the most beneficial exercises a person can do because it’s an unparalleled cardiovascular workout which will strengthen and tone your entire body!

The Advantages of using a Jump Rope

There are several advantages to performing jump rope exercises, some with surprise you. First off, using a jump rope is very easy to learn. You can tone your entire body by performing jump rope exercises.

Here comes the shock: Did you know you that you can burn up to 1000 calories an hour with jump rope exercises? It’s because you’re using all the major muscle groups in your entire body. You will burn an incredible amount of fat but simply performing jump exercises.

They are portable and very inexpensive. You can take a jump rope anywhere you go and use it anywhere you want. Makes finding a time and place to exercise much easier.

Jump Rope Workout

Here is a sample workout routine with a Jump rope. This is an H.I.I.T workout or High Intensity Interval Training.

The 15 Minute Jump Rope Workout

• Jump Rope for 3 minutes (warm up)
• Rest for 30 seconds
• Jump rope as quickly as possible for 60 seconds
• Rest for 30 seconds
• Jump Rope as quickly as possible for 60 seconds
• Rest for 30 seconds
• Repeat this alternating pattern for 15-20 minutes

This is just a sample workout you can perform with a jump rope. You can also add your own style to it, whether it’s running in place, jumping, etc. A jump rope are a fantastic piece of equipment to help burn calories and body fat. If you want to workout at home, I strongly suggest getting one, plus everything else on How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym.

Since a Balance Trainer is #5 on my list of How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym, I thought I would explain why and what you can do with them.

A Balance Trainer is great piece of equipment for working on your balance, core strength and stability. There are two sides to a Balance Trainer, the dome side and the platform. The dome side is great for exercises working on cardio to strength training. The platform side is great for core exercises. Both sides offer a variety of workouts and exercises.

The Advantages of Using a Balance Trainer

The balance trainer offers several advantages that no offer exercise equipment offers. By adding a balance trainer to your workouts, you will work on balance, core strength and stability, which require you to use more muscles in your body, increasing the effectiveness of each exercise.

When using a Balance Training, Remember these Tips

When first performing exercises on the balance trainer, you should add a contact point (a chair, wall, or bar) to keep your balance. Once the exercises become easier, then you should take away the contact point to create a more challenging exercise.

If you are getting sore using the balance trainer, take a break from it and use the floor. Then go back to the balance trainer when you’re ready.

Balance Trainer Exercises

A great tool for working on balance, stability and core strength is the balance trainer. Here are 5 exercises that you can perform on a balance trainer to work on those three.

1) Basic Stance

To perform the basic stance, stand on the dome side with both feet. Your feet should be on either side of the bull’s eye. By just standing on the dome, you’ll feel your feet moving and your torso contacting to find balance.

Once this becomes easier for you, try simply closing your eyes or lifting your arms.

2) Squats

To perform the squat on the balance trainer, stand on the dome side with your feet slightly forward of the center. Then, bend your knees and perform a squat by slowly descending down while keeping your back straight. Extend your arms straight out to help keep your balance. Once you reach as low as you can, push up with your legs. Don’t just stand up. Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each.

3) Basic Crunch

To perform the basic crunch, sit down on the dome side of the balance trainer with your hops toward the bottom of the dome and your knees bent. Place your hands behind your head or even across your chest, then roll back until you feel your abs stretch. Then, by contracting your abs, curl up.  Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each.

4) Ball Tilt

To perform the ball tilt, turn the balance trainer over and grab the handles on each side. The dome should be face down. Then get into a plank position on your toes. Then, keep the body in a straight line and without bending your arms, tilt the balance trainer forward and then bring it back. Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each. After each 10-12 set, switch to your other side.

For a more difficult exercise, instead of just tilting the trainer back and forth, go in a circle. Rock it forward, right back, and the to the left.

5) V- Sit

The V-Sit is when you sit in the center or perhaps slightly forward on the dome. With hands on either side, keep your support. Then, lift your legs with the knees bend and balance keeping your torso straight and your shoulders relaxed. You should feel your abs tight. Hold this position for 25-30 seconds. You increase the difficulty of the v-sit, take your hands away from the sides and hold them straight out in front of you. Then, straighten your legs, adding a lower leg crunch.

These are just a few workouts that involve the balance trainer. There are plentty of others which involve dumbbells, resistance bands and medicine balls. These are just a few of the begginner exercises. Balance Trainers are a fantastic piece of equipment to have at your home to increase balance, stabilty, and core strength by increasing the number of muscles used in each workout and increasing the variety of workouts possible. If you want to workout at home, I strongly suggest getting one, plus everything else on How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym.

Since Medicine Balls are #3 on my list of How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym, I thought I would explain why and what you can do with them.

Medicine balls are also known as (weighted exercise balls, med balls, etc.). They are great for strength training exercises and to increase power. They are primary used to strengthen abdominal muscle with various different exercises. However, there are several exercises, which medicine balls can workout the chest, legs, and arms.

The Advantages of Medicine Ball Workouts

Abdominal workouts with Medicine Balls are far more effective than performing them without the medicine ball. By using a medicine ball you add more weight to your workout, increasing your use of muscles, increasing your muscle growth.

Medicine Balls can be also used to stretch your muscle because we all know, stretch is very important when lifting weights.

Medicine Ball Safety is Always Important

Just like using dumbbells and weight machines, there are a few rules of safety to follow when working out with medicine balls. As always, it is very important to stretch before using weights/bands to loosen each muscle group and prepare them to be lifting extra weight. If you do not stretch before using any band, tears, strain and other injuries can happen to your muscles.

Always learn how to perform each exercise before attempting. Practice without the medicine ball in your hands first and perform the exercise. Once you feel you have the correct form and technique, then you may add the medicine ball to your exercise. Using the correct form will result in more effective workouts, unlike when you perform them with the wrong form, which can lead to injuries or just no results.

Medicine Ball Exercises

Medicine Balls are primary used for abdominal exercises, but can be used to strength chest, leg, and arm muscles, too. Here are 5 exercises with medicine balls that are extremely effective. Some are exercises you already know, but by adding a medicine ball you will increase the use of your muscles in the exercise, giving your muscle a better workout.

1) The Twist

To perform the Overhead Twist, start in a standing position with your feet at shoulder width apart. Then, hold the medicine ball over your head with your arms locked. Once in this position, move the ball slowly right to left and then left to right. This is a great exercise to stretch your lower back and upper torso.

To stretch the lower back, hold to ball straight out in front of you. Then move the ball from left to right, then right to left.

2) Crunches

Crunches with medicine balls give your abs better workout. To perform crunches with a medicine ball, lie on your back on the floor with your knees bent. Hold the ball on your chest with both hands. Then perform a crunch keeping the ball on your chest and hold for 1 second, then lay back down. Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each.

3) Working the Obliques

To perform this exercise, lie on your back on the floor with your knees bent. Place the medicine ball between your knees, holding in place. Then, rotate your legs from left to right and then back to the starting position.  Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each.

4) Lateral Flexion

To perform the lateral flexion, you will need a physio ball. To start, lie on your side over the physio ball and then spread your legs for balance. Then, hold the medicine ball over your head and curl up towards the ceiling. Then, lay back down across the ball to the starting position. Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each. After each 10-12 set, switch to your other side.

5) Squats

To perform a squat with a medicine ball. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Then, while holding the medicine ball with both hands straight out in front of you, slowly descend down toward the ground. Then, using your leg muscle push up, keeping your back straight at all times. Perform this exercise for 3 sets, with 10-12 each reps each.

These are just a few workouts that use a medicine ball, there are plenty more. Medicine Balls are a fantastic piece of equipment to have at your home to increase muscle use in abdominal workouts. If you want to workout at home, I strongly suggest getting one, plus everything else on How to Create an Inexpensive Home Gym.