Aerobic Isometrics- Goes GREAT with Paleo Diet!

But, no one knows it!  (Except YOU!) and me, of course...

All right: the above is me in my farmhouse basement, doing an "aerobic isometric" dip exercise.  I made the dipping bars about 30 years ago, from pipe I bought from Menard's.  The cost was very minimal...

Anyway, that's not the point, really!  Dip stations are readily available- the problem is doing the dips!
Most people just can't do them!  They are demanding, just like chin-ups, and dips are especially demanding (and even somewhat dangerous for the untrained!) in the extreme low position.

The "aerobic isometric" version of the dip solves all of this!

By helping the "dip" just enough with the legs, the dip becomes:

1. As easy as you want, or need it to be
2. As safe as can be!
3. MORE productive than a standard dip, even for a trained athlete who has done them for years!


How can this be?  Easy:  the exercise is being done in a manner that invites and encourages loading of the musculature and joints through a full range of motion, slowly, without "momentum, i.e. heaving of the weight".  It also includes complete loading of the targeted muscles throughout- 
all done with complete safety, and, given the duration of the set- maximum inroad to the musculature involved!

What this means, in a nutshell, is that aerobic/isometric exercises exhaust, and initiate strength gains in your muscles in a completely safe manner, in one of the most productive formats possible!

It's like "Paleo Exercise"!  Aerobic Isometrics are one of the easiest, safest, most productive exercises on the planet!

Here are a couple more "aerobic isometric" exercises for you to explore:

There are more, but they will be the subject of further posts...  For now, just experiment with:
Aerobic Isometrics!  Odd to the uninitiated, but very effective!

PaleoJay's Smoothie Cafe #90 Very Best exercise equipment, and the ONLY way to deadlift!

I know, I generally say you don’t need equipment to work out- after all, if you are doing virtual resistance training (flexing as you move through a muscles range of motion) and then holding isometrically...  your own body is the resistance.  And this is the most efficient and safe of all forms of exercise!  It should be your warmup, and the core of your fitness regimen for the rest of your life.  Nothing else even comes close in terms of totally working your entire physique!

But it is also great to include other tools in your bodyweight arsenal.  The first one I would recommend to you is the rebounder, or mini-trampoline.

I have mentioned this piece of equipment before in a podcast, and it is a wonderful addition to virtual resistance training- I often do my virtual moving “poses” on the rebounder, usually in front of the TV...This kind of “doubles your pleasure, doubles your fun” in a good kind of way- you are working aerobically and your musculature at the same time.  A really time efficient way to work out!

I am also a great fan of the pushup!  And while the “hands flat on the floor” version is good, using a perfect pushup type of revolving handle is even better- not only does it raise your hands up off the floor, giving you a greater range of motion and more muscle engagement, it also protects your wrists and shoulders from damage by rotating along with the motion.  This protects your joints even as it makes the exercise more productive.

Ab Roller

Perfect Pushup

P bars, or parallette bars are another great option for pushups, giving you a VERY low extension below parallel.  They are also great for L sits, a top notch ab exercise you can

My homemade P bars!

do.  In a pinch, the perfect pushup device mentioned before can also be used for L sits!  Just make sure you get the heavy duty version of the perfect pushup, as the other lesser version will wear out quickly supporting your body weight in the L sit, and doing pushups with your feet raised off the floor and resting on the back of a couch or chair while you do your leg raised of “Atlas 3” pushups.

An ab roller is wonderful, and actually another kind of pushup!  Wonderful ab exercise, and it also simultaneously works the arms, chest, back and shoulders- also, it’s a great party trick, as most men cannot do even one without gradually working up to it.  To begin, get an ab roller (they are quite cheap!) and do them from your knees.  Next, you can do them from the top as a negative, going as slowly as you can downwards, and just stop at the bottom.  Eventually you will get one full, top to bottom and back up again rep, and then you will add another, and another until you get to a set of 6 or 7.  That’s all you really need in terms of reps- then, just do multiple sets for a very high level of fitness!  I like to “superset” ab roll outs with my sets of pushups.

Of course, a pullup/chinup bar is a necessity, but a tree branch of piece of pipe will do in a pinch.  I use my old power rack in the basement for this, back from my old weight lifting days of long ago, and a power rack or “cage” is a very versatile piece of equipment indeed- it is much more productive without weights, as it is ideal for isometric work, utilizing its pins to press against with empty bars or wooden dowels.  It is also great to use the power rack for squat variations- you can use the side supports to hold on to as you do a one legged or “pistol” squat.  It helps to lean back as you do this, because that really takes the strain off of the knee joint and puts it right over the quadricep muscle where you want it.  You can duplicate this upstairs, too, by doing these pistols in a door frame!

Another wonderful training adjunct is a set of gymnastic rings!

Now they are mounted on the ceiling joists!

very advanced!

Mount these in your basement as I have, and you will find them to be among the most satisfying, versatile and productive pieces of equipment you could possibly own.  They are wonderful to do pushups on!  You can do Atlas 1,2,and 3 pushups quickly and conveniently, just by moving a little forwards or backwards to adjust the grips to be parallel to the floor (Atlas 1), angles halfway up (Atlas 2), or angled up high (Atlas 3).

They are also great for pullups, L sits, and dips; also rows, and as assists for pistols!

Really- find a place for rings in your house, garage, basement or yard!  They are just fantastic to train on.

I am saving the most crucial for last- an Exergenie is the ONLY way I recommend to do a deadlift, or a heavy squat!

Exergenie

I know, this is controversial within Paleo Land, but it is also undeniable when you really look into it- just as gluten, and the other anti-nutrients in wheat and other grains are undeniably very harmful to human beings in their nutrition- so is lifting a heavy bar from the ground and standing up in a dead lift harmful to your back and other joints.

Also, putting a heavy barbell across your shoulders, and squatting, will compress your spine, inevitably damage your knees, and set you up for serious, long-term injury.

Also, it just gives you a fat butt, bulging abdomen, and blocky thighs- avoid these exercises!

High rep hindu squats, the aforementioned pistols, and the exergenie can give you anything these exercises can, BETTER!  I have an old exergenie that I bought off of Ebay- it has wooden handles, but they sell new ones too,  and you can use it to do maximum effort deadlifts, squats, military presses, curls, and many other exercises.  You feed the rope (that supplies the resistance) out with your fingers, and you can make the resistance as hard as you want throughout the whole range of motion.  You can make it so hard that 3 reps is all you need for the squat and deadlift.

The best thing about the Exergenie is what you can do for your shoulders!  You can mount it in a door frame, closing the door on it 1/2 way up or so, and really lean into it, stretching out your shoulder girdle in every way possible.  Then, you can pull back using just enough resistance to really work the entire shoulder region in every way- this is the very best way that I have found to really work the shoulders and protect the joint by strengthening both the muscles, tendons and ligaments gradually, from the inside out!

Along with a proper diet, and adequate sleep, these small pieces of training equipment can do far more for your health, strength, and physique than any gym membership you can name.  And, you will have them forever, right in your living room or basement or garage, and can make maximum  use of them for a lifetime!

PaleoJay's Smoothie Cafe #88 The Very Best Type of Exercise EVER!

pjsc podcast  #88 The Very Best Type of Natural Exercise You Can Do!

Something that I have brought up on a regular basis, and actually go into depth on in my eBook Perfectly Paleo Exercise is most perfect type of exercise you can possibly do- it requires NO equipment, can be done anywhere, and allows a maximum contraction and tension throughout the whole range of motion of each muscle in the body from head to toe, and shapes the body symmetrically , and without damaging the discs in the back or risking shoulder or knee damage, which effects are inevitable with weight training!  What is this miracle form of exercise?

It’s what Charles Atlas taught in his famous mail order courses of comic book fame- he called it dynamic tension- it is also called virtual resistance, and transformetrics.

But whatever you call it, it works, it has worked for literally thousands of years in many cultures throughout the world, and it will work for you.

How does it work?  It’s simple once you see and understand it, and it is easily incorporated into your life.  The best way to understand and implement it is to either get my eBook Perfectly Paleo Exercise, and/or go to www.transformetrics.com/exercises

This is part of the site of John E. Peterson, and he is the modern day, living personification of Charles Atlas!  Years ago, I found a couple of books of his, and learned of this form of exercise when I was still a busted up, chronically injured weight lifter- it changed my training life entirely, and actually improved and enhanced my physique and overall strength, while simultaneously freeing me from hours of painful training in the gym, and ultimately curing all my chronic injuries that had been caused by those very weights.

If you go to the transformetrics site, you can see the exercises I am talking about, which are really just controlled flexing of each muscle group throughout the full range of motion.

Really!  It is that simple- you just flex, the degree of applied tension is up to you- it can be a mild flex, but what you want to work up to is a powerful flex and tension as you slowly go through the full range of motion- you will feel it, strongly, and if you are used to using weights you will recognize the feeling as exactly the same- but without the damage to joints and cartilage- and actually more intense because the tension is just as strong in the “weak” part of the “lift” as it is in the strong part, and because there is no cheating as in lifting more weight by cheating in form... you know, like curling a heavy bar and rocking back to life more weight than you could with strict form- since the tension is generated internally, BY YOU, the tension (the “weight”) is always just what you make it, no more, no less, and so you can make it IDEAL at each and every part of the “lift”...

And no damage to your precious, God given body!

Not only no damage, but doing these movements will actually rejuvenate, and rebuild your physique from the inside out- where weights actually stress the tendons by chiefly putting the tension on the muscles only, virtual or self-generated resistance put the stress first on the tendons and ligaments, strengthening them first, and then safely passing the stress onto the musculature itself.

This not only develops the physique in the most symmetrical, natural and pleasing way, i.e. without excessive bulk as in a fat butt, bulky thighs, and protruding abdomen so common in heavy weight lifters and conventional bodybuilders, but it actually builds the sort of real world strength that is so important in performing real physical feats in the real world, like actually moving heavy awkward objects, and strength that is applicable in twisting, pounding, and otherwise moving in different planes of motion!

Not just things like, oh, squatting under a heavy bar and straining straight upwards, or lying on a bench, and pushing a heavy bar straight up, or lifting a heavy bar from the ground, straight up as in a deadlift-

How applicable is this sort of “strength” to daily life??

Especially, if while doing the above you are wearing a belt, and knee wraps, (as in the squat)?

Or a bench shirt, and wrist wraps, as in a bench press??

Or, doing a dead lift, wearing a belt, special shoes, and straps to hold the bar???

How strong are you REALLY??  I mean IN THE REAL WORLD?

And so, my friend- come back to the future!

As I so often say, our future is in our past!!

And this form of natural exercise has been with us forever, long before weights, or machines, or P90X, or any other training fad...

And, it is so easily incorporated into your daily life-

It is easy to do in your living room, in front of the television!

Or outside, in nature, amongst a grove of pine trees, as I often do...

Or in a motel room if you are traveling!

And how much time are we talking here??

Really, not that much at all!  The thing is, this form of virtual training is so natural, and physically so satisfying and non- draining, that the tendency is to just do it, and keep on for a while, since it feels so good.

To get good effects, time wise?  15 minutes will do very well!  That is enough time to work the entire body...

The thing is though, you work through the entire body, and are feeling great (not drained or sore or injured at all!), and then you decide to...

Repeat the cycle

And why not?  The muscles are warmed up, you feel great, and you want to increase the tension somewhat on the next cycle or set...

Also, you are in the middle of a movie or whatever program on TV, and you want to continue watching- why not keep going?

At a later stage, after doing this for awhile, you may want to add in some pushups, and some straight legged sit ups and hindu squats in the mix- I mean, as your strength and overall fitness increase, it just starts to feel good to use your muscles as God intended, and to gradually enhance your ability to do so... so you do!

Old aches and pains will diminish- I know mine did!  You will start to add in isometrics and self-resisted exercises- anything to continue building your body via physical culture which is what this whole process is as opposed to bodybuilding, cross fit, olympic lifting, or whatever damaging physical process you have been sucked into...


Virtual resistance, transformetrics, dynamic tension-

Whatever you call it- this natural, physical culturist form of exercise-

The kind that has been with us since pre-biblical times to train the greatest warriors ever, including peaceful warriors- and the greatest physiques such as the models for the statues of the ancient Greeks:

I call it Perfectly Paleo Exercise!

Visualized Resistance Exercise- How To!

Ok, today I show you a simple little video that you can easily replicate, and add into your daily routine!

This is the high reach, and is really good at both rehabbing shoulders, including the oft injured rotator cuff.  The key is to slowly move through the motion, feeling each part of the exercise by consciously tensing the musculature throughout- the back, the shoulders, the arms- all are gently yet very thoroughly exercised in this way.

The exciting part of this type of exercise, besides it being very convenient is that it is extremely safe.  You are always in control of the resistance, since you are supplying it yourself!  You can do this in front of the TV in your living room, outside in the sunlight and fresh air- virtually anywhere- and there is zero compression of your spine and other tissues.  It's just a really good way to go, with no downside; something you can't say about almost any other form of exercise!  It's free, it's easy to get started, it is very effective, and it leaves you feeling rejuvenated rather than drained!

Here is a link to an earlier blog post, where I show a few more exercises in a brief format-

DO THEM ALL AND EXERCISE YOURSELF FROM HEAD TO TOE!

Paleo Exercise and TV

Good luck in your training!  

J

Paleo Exercise and TV!

It seems strange, even to me, that something as age-old and basic as Perfectly Paleo types of exercise blend perfectly with television viewing; specifically Netflix shows and movies!
But, it's true...

I exercise early mornings, which is the only time that I can reliably reserve for myself.  I think it's like that for most of us "worker bees".  I get up, make my Paleo Smoothie for the day whilst heating the water for my tea and coffee...  While the Vitamix is running on high, blending all of the veggies, fruits, kefir, spices, green tea, etc.  that will nourish me for day optimally, I walk into the living room, and select my streaming Netflix movie of the day!  (What a tough caveman's life).

I always start with Visualized Resistance Exercises.  I learned about these years ago from John Peterson of  Transformetrics, who is the acknowledged expert on this form of resistance training.

Here is a brief, abbreviated video I made to demonstrate this simple, timeless form of safe, productive, and easy-to-do-anywhere form of exercise-

So, while I watch an entertaining movie, I gradually stretch out, and tense every muscle group in my body!  You can make it as taxing or as easy as you'd like; I find I wind up tensing on average up to 80% or so of my maximum ability...believe it or not, often this period in the morning is my favorite part of the day!

Doing these Visualized exercises can be your entire workout, as was mine this morning, since I worked really hard yesterday, and wanted to recover. (This form of exercise can be very restorative, to both muscles and joints).  It starts by strengthening the ligaments and tendons, as opposed to standard weight lifting, which starts by taxing the muscles, and does little or nothing to gradually strengthen and prepare the connective tissues and joints to bear the increased load on the musculature.

But usually, I finish up with pushups, sit-ups, hindu squats, hindu pushups, bridging, and other calisthenics, along with some self-resisted exercise (one arm resisting another, for instance)... and isometric holds as well.

By the time you are done with such a productive, yet actually fun session of Paleo Exercise in front of your TV, you have worked on virtually every muscle in your body, and you feel just great- 
What a way to start your day!

I recommend it to one and all- you'll never want to just sit on the couch and passively watch television again- it's that addicting.

J

Perfectly Paleo Exercise eBook is available NOW on Amazon!

Here is the cover!  Wow- dynamite cover!!  Parisian Paleo Artiste "le-Jaymo" painting your future health with a natural dietary palette...

As of now, the eBook is only available on Amazon, via the Kindle app.  Using the Kindle app, or, if you have one, the Kindle itself, is a seamless way to view the book!

You can use the app on your iPhone, your iPad, your Android tablet- whatever!  It's a free download, just go to:

All devices free Kindle app download!

Anyway, my Paleo Quick Start Exercise friends: if you want to view this book in all of its paleolithic glory, you have only to go to this link:

Perfectly Paleo Exercise

I hope you enjoy it!  Paleo DIET has been done to death- Paleo exercise, natural Exercise has been given short shrift...

Up until NOW!


J

Paleo Golf!

Actually, golfing is a wonderful, paleo-esque activity!  Really!

Think about it: long, leisurely hikes (like through the savannah), similar to tracking game...  lots of "slow-twitch" muscle fiber actions (chipping and putting), and just a few drives-(fast twitch power moves- like throwing a spear!)

A few interactions with hostile tribesmen (Judge Smails aka Ted Knight),

 and also a lot of interactions with characters such as Rodney Dangerfield (aka Al Czervik),

 and witch- doctor Ty Webb (Chevy Chase)... you get the idea!  Bushwood Country Club is a Paleo landscape!

Carl (Bill Murray) is a caveman, right on the country club scene!

And then, after a long, arduous (sort of) game of golf, you go to the clubhouse for  a big feast of prime rib or it's equivalent!

Talk about hunt-effort-reward!

So, why is there no mention of golf in Paleo discussions??

I think it is because Paleo/Primal folks are so strength training dominant.  Not that there is anything, per se wrong with that at all- training for strength is key in body composition and overall health, but there is also a huge role for the long, slow movement, punctuated by sudden bursts of high intensity effort that typified the lives of our primeval ancestors!  And, plaid pants and white belts aside:

Golf is IDEAL for this!!

I almost feel a bit like Martin Luther, saying this to the Catholic church hierarchy... but, it's true:

Golf is Paleo!!

There, I said it.  But, before you imagine me playing loud "Caddyshack" music from my golf bag, ala Rodney Dangerfield, and buying a plethora of "Naked Lady tee's", let me stress that I have some definite golf training ideas that Rodney, not to mention Judge Smails would not agree with!!  

(Carl might...)

OK, you have a normal golf "swing", right?  

Well, you also need a "left" golf swing (if you are right handed!)

The normal, "Transformetric" "Visualized resistance", Maxalding or "Dynamic tension"; whatever you call it-these exercises will dramatically increase your strength... and your overall golf game!!

Getting stronger, NATURALLY, will not only help your health, but will REVITALIZE your GOLF GAME!!

There is going to be a lot of that information in my "in-process" eBook :

Perfectly Paleo Exercise! 

This Book is coming SOON!

But for now, let me tell you one, invaluable golf tip:

Just swing from the other side!

Yup, if you are right-handed, practice swinging from the left side!

And, left-handed: do the reverse.  Right side swinging...

BUT, do it slowly, VISUALIZED, with resistance being generated from within, TENSING the muscles of the swing as you go!

Do it maybe 10 times, slowly...

Then, do it the right way, using your dominant (either right or left side depending), and also use the visualized resistance; making it hard, and flexing the working muscles intentionally.

This self resistance is going to build strength a lot, and doing it in reverse will balance out your development, and save your spine.  (The curse of golfers from swinging from one side forever!)

This exercise will only take you a few minutes per day...

But will turn you from a Judge Smails wannabe to..

A Ty Webb(Chevy Chase) golfing guru!!

Even Carl will be impressed!!

What you really need to succeed in the Paleo diet!

This is what my daughter, Holly and I recommend for you for adopting the Paleo way of life:

Cut out the grains.  Wheat, rye, barley, corn... kind of in that order- the big one being wheat!  Ubiquitous wheat, read: sugar, results in insulin spiking, which means fast aging and fat storage.


Cut back hugely on sugar.  Processed foods are loaded with it.  Donuts, soft drinks, chips of all sorts, just say no.  Already your health is vastly improved!

Buy a Vitamix.  Blend up a Paleo Smoothie each morning for breakfast, and maybe for part of your lunch...  You are really getting about 2/3 of the way there to abundant health...

Exercise should enter in here: check out my previous posts on Perfect Paleo Exercise!

Lastly, get enough good, quality SLEEP!  This is really a huge determinant in health!

But NOW- 


You've done all of the above!  You are eating a Paleo-type of diet.  You have stopped the slow suicide of a S.A.D. (Standard American Diet), and have gone to eating real foods as God made them.  Processed "food" is in your past...

but you still have health issues??


I don't care if it is auto-immune disease, fat loss problems, or even depression- Chris Kresser is your man!

This is the one guy I would recommend to my mother, my maiden aunt, or even- you fill in the blank.

This guy knows his nutrition!

 I know that most problems in health can be readily solved by a change of nutrition, mainly by adopting a Paleo-type of diet.  A Paleo Smoothie makes it much easier...

But, in those situations where this simple intervention is not enough, where the metabolic system has been so challenged that the body is really damaged- 

Go to the Personal Paleo Solution, via Chris Kresser!

This guy is a Paleo guru!  He knows whereof he speaks, really.  

If you are at your wit's end, and your health is your overriding concern- 

CLICK ON CHRIS!

I don't mean to be overbearing.  But if you were my maiden Aunt- I would refer your to this guy!


Enough said.  Paleo Diet is often enough.  If not...


Click Chris!  
J

Shakeology or Paleo Smoothie?

Or even (gasp) Real Food??!!  Is that even an option?


You bet it is!

I recently read about this Shakeology guy in a business magazine.  It appears that this young, model-type of guy, Darin Olien, is the spokesmodel for this multi-level marketing powdered shake mix, that is affiliated with the much-hyped on TV P90X exercise DVD outfit.

I was curious, since it was a "shake" or smoothie type of deal... so I checked it all out online.

Bottom line?

Darin travels the globe, looking for rare, and probably magical fruits, tubers, nuts, whatever, and then cutting deals with the locals to provide them for his dehydrated Shakeology drinks!  This enables you, the consumer, to purchase these powdered shake-things to mix up in your blender, and replace meals with!  (Sounds eerily like the Paleo Quick Start Smoothie, right?)  Just mix it up with water, almond milk, or extra-sugary juice (it doesn't really matter, does it?) and voila- Shakeology!

I include the ingredient list below; nothing in it is really bad.  Wheat grass, Barley grass, Kamut grass- not so great.  Whey protein, hey, OK.  But at $120.00 for 30 servings... YIKES!!  

Here is my own Paleo Smoothie ingredient list, replete with nutrition, that you can easily make yourself.  The nutrition levels are about as good as it gets:

Quick Paleo Smoothie ingredients list:
My current recipe- variations are not only possible, but encouraged! But the base outlined here is very representative of a transformative replacement meal/ultimate real food supplement in one tasty drink!
Here is part one of the Paleo Quick Start Smoothie:

Coconut Milk- 1 can
Coconut oil and/or red Palm oil- 2 Tablespoons
Carlson’s or Nordic Naturals Cod liver oil- 1 Tablespoon
Powdered kelp- 1 teaspoon
Unsweetened kefir- 1/4 cup
Organic, unsweetened lemon juice- 1 teaspoon
Apple cider vinegar- 1 teaspoon
1-2 cups of green tea
cinnamon- 1 tsp- also great on coffee and whipped cream! (Fresh ground is best-
I use a coffee grinder)
Frozen spinach- approximately 1 cup
Frozen mixed “California Mix” vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), ~1 cup
Frozen mixed berries- blueberries, raspberries, strawberries- 1 cup
1/2 banana (I freeze mine so they don’t over-ripen)
1 peeled orange

2 raw, organic free range eggs (optional) 

Since publishing my ebook, I have begun adding the dried, powdered varieties of:
turmeric 1 tsp
ginger 1 tsp
Both are strong anti-inflammatory agents, among many other benefits.

I have also started substituting dried coconut milk powder for the canned coconut milk..

This is optional, but is cheaper, and more convenient as well!

Part 2-
That’s it! You can also “mix and match” with fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables you have on hand- cranberries are a favorite of mine, as is liquid vitamin D in the Winter months!

Part 3-

The beauty of this drink, besides its being economical, real food, is that it has everything that your body and mind need to thrive!!  Nothing exotic, but really, exotic is really not necessary...it just makes good marketing. 

Save your money!  

It's a multi-level marketing scheme, and I believe P90X is right in the same ballpark- home grown versions of exercise (see www.transformetrics.com) are even more effective, and do-able long term.

With all the money you save by avoiding these bogus fitness schemes, you can buy a real fitness tool- a Vitamix Blender, to make your own Paleo Smoothies!!

And, you can also get a Weber Grill and a slow cooker to make...  real food!!  (What a concept!)

You may have enough money left over to buy a chin-up bar, a set of perfect pushup devices, and make your own kettlebell- now you have all you will ever need for fitness AND nutrition!!

Forget the multilevel marketing versions of health- Do it yourself!  

Try Perfectly Paleo Exercise, which also has a LARGE section on nutrition.

Jay

Shake-your-booty-ology below:

\



It

The Perfect Paleo Exercise!

You've heard of weight lifting/ strength training/bodybuilding










You've heard of power lifting.

You've heard of Olympic lifting!

You've even heard of Movnat!

Movnat is a great step in the right direction...

But, what you have NOT heard of is...

Visualized Resistance!   (Here are all the exercises you need, in a form you can easily duplicate.  Thank John Peterson and Wendy Pett for the demonstrations, but then, just do them, daily).

This is the stuff that Charles Atlas made his reputation from-  self resistance generated within the muscles!  It is also known as DYNAMIC TENSION!  (Remember from the comic books??)
The Comic Books withstanding...  it WORKS!!

You just- self resist throughout the range of motion.  So simple it seems almost... fake!

But it is not at all!  I honestly believe that, for MOST people, Visualized resistance is ALL that they really need to be totally fit!!  


That, and a completely PALEO DIET, eschewing grains and sugars, primarily!

I really think that, from a "Moving Naturally" and a "Paleo" perspective; i.e. getting back to what is natural for humans, nothing is more natural than this self resisted, cat-like means of natural exercise!

And NOW, my new eBook is out on Amazon- Perfectly Paleo Exercise
Soon to also be available on all other vendors, including the iBookstore...

Bottom line?

Fix your diet!  Eliminate grains and sugars.  NOW!!  
That is at least 80% of the battle!!

For the rest of the battle?  Well, I would say:

Incorporate a paleo smoothie that immediately fixes the deficiencies in your diet that you've had for decades:   


All of the micro-nutrients, proteins, intestinal-repair and rejuvenating agents, vitamins, minerals, and just plain nutrient dense foods that you've been lacking for... decades, at least!


That is MOST of the battle!  REALLY!


But, after you've incorporated all of the dietary changes that will revolutionize how you look, feel, and perform...


Well, you need to perform!  


These exercises will help you to do just that:

Safely- Easily (No equipment needed!!)- and VERY effectively!!


I know, I am a lone voice in the wilderness on this; but trust me:

Weight lifting is a dead end.  Body weight resistance is not only adequate...

It is really all you need!!  


AND SELF RESISTANCE (VISUALIZED ESPECIALLY) IS THE BEST KEPT SECRET IN NATURAL HEALTH!


Just try it, please!   Coupled with a paleo diet there is nothing better for you.

I think it doesn't catch on, primarily, because, just like the Paleo Diet-

THERE IS NOTHING TO SELL!!


J

Aerobic Isometrics- Goes GREAT with Paleo Diet!

But, no one knows it!  (Except YOU!) and me, of course...

All right: the above is me in my farmhouse basement, doing an "aerobic isometric" dip exercise.  I made the dipping bars about 30 years ago, from pipe I bought from Menard's.  The cost was very minimal...

Anyway, that's not the point, really!  Dip stations are readily available- the problem is doing the dips!
Most people just can't do them!  They are demanding, just like chin-ups, and dips are especially demanding (and even somewhat dangerous for the untrained!) in the extreme low position.

The "aerobic isometric" version of the dip solves all of this!

By helping the "dip" just enough with the legs, the dip becomes:

1. As easy as you want, or need it to be
2. As safe as can be!
3. MORE productive than a standard dip, even for a trained athlete who has done them for years!


How can this be?  Easy:  the exercise is being done in a manner that invites and encourages loading of the musculature and joints through a full range of motion, slowly, without "momentum, i.e. heaving of the weight".  It also includes complete loading of the targeted muscles throughout- 
all done with complete safety, and, given the duration of the set- maximum inroad to the musculature involved!

What this means, in a nutshell, is that aerobic/isometric exercises exhaust, and initiate strength gains in your muscles in a completely safe manner, in one of the most productive formats possible!

It's like "Paleo Exercise"!  Aerobic Isometrics are one of the easiest, safest, most productive exercises on the planet!

Here are a couple more "aerobic isometric" exercises for you to explore:

There are more, but they will be the subject of further posts...  For now, just experiment with:
Aerobic Isometrics!  Odd to the uninitiated, but very effective!


I even have more in the category of aerobic isometrics- I mean, you can do these with other exercises-

But they are made to order with the chin and dip exercises!!  
J

Barefoot sprinting in Winter?

Obviously, barefoot sprinting is not something one would often do in Winter, at least not here in Wisconsin!  Since we just had our first, belated snowfall on December 4, and my Sunday, farmhouse basement workout was on the agenda, I needed a substitute.

I always usually do kettlebell swings on my Sunday workouts, but today I decided to... up the ante!


I did intervals of kettlebell swings, interspersed between my chins, dips, aerobic/isometric chins and dips-aerobic isometric dip  and aerobic isometric chin ups.

Just like the intervals I usually do sprinting across my acreage barefoot, the kettlebell swings tax every part of my body, for the 5 or 6 intervals I do, but in a do-able, and really kind of enjoyable way. (If your body has become accustomed to enjoying exertion!)

After you've "gone paleo" for a while, cutting the processed crap, grains and sugars from your diet, and added healthy fats, proteins, fruits and veggies (all easily done via the Paleo Quick Start Smoothie!), your body actually starts to crave exertion!  Just like our cat, Zeke craves to go outside and just run, jump, and play, even this old almost 60 year old wants to do the same!  Hard to believe, in our modern sick, medicated, under-exercised, sedentary society- but, if we become healthy again, we actually-

Feel again like we did when we were 10 years old!!  TONS of energy, and happy as a lark!!


I invite everyone to join me on the paleo journey!  Eat the way God intended us to eat- real food!
Move naturally!  Sleep LOTS!  Connect meaningfully with family and friends!  Play!  Make music, play golf, ride your bike, throw a frisbee, grow your garden, play in your yard, hike... you get my drift!

Live like you were put here by God to live a meaningful life, living up to your potential, fulfilling whatever gifts you have been given to develop, and then sharing them with others- this is what we are here for!

We are not here to watch spectator sports (we are meant to participate in sports- that's the whole point-they are supposed to be fun!) We are not here to watch TV- a little of good TVand movies is great; just think of TV and Netflix as dark chocolate- a little is great!  Too much... is heroin!  It will destroy you.

Start by eating right!  Believe it or not, then everything else will just make... common sense!
J

Visualized Resistance training and isometrics as natural training, i.e. MOVNAT!

Here is my cat, Zeke!

When talking of MOVNAT, or natural movement training, he is my expert!  The way this little 8 month old runs, climbs, stretches and just plain MOVES is inspirational to me.  As I think it was to Charles Atlas, the comic book, mail order icon who resurrected visualized resistance training almost a century ago, after watching a lion (think ZEKE here!), who stretched, and FLEXED his muscles (as cats do!), and inspired him to think:

"Hey- if that's how cats (and other animals keep in prime physical shape... maybe that's how humans are meant to do so, as well!!"

He was right!  

You can do an arm curl (easy to visualize, that's why I use it), and consciously apply resistance, and make it as hard as you want!  Try it- see??  You just flex as you curl, and make it as hard as you'd like!

Then, you can add an isometric hold at the end of the curl- don't stint- flex with all you've got at the uppermost part of the movement!!

See what I mean? Do 7 reps or so of curls, with visualized, self-inflicted, mental resistance; top it off with an isometric hold for 4 or 5 seconds...

and you have just completed the hardest, most PRODUCTIVE,  set of biceps curls of your life!!

With no equipment, no set-up worries, and no danger of injuries!!

I think this type of training is a no-brainer!!  Do it for ALL of your body!!

Cats do.  Humans can too!  It's how the ancient Greeks trained, and the early Asian martial artists...  

It's so old, that it seems too "low tech" for us computerized, technology junkies.  But, simple training is probably (like simple eating, i.e. the Paleo diet humans have consumed for millions of years) the best for us!  

Check out visualized resistance training for a quick tutorial on visualized resistance exercise!  

Just do like John Peterson and Wendy Pett do on transformetrics.com!  They are the most current flag-bearers for visualized resistance, so pay attention!!


Zeke would help you, but he can't talk...

Paleo is achievable, anywhere!

Here I am, in Columbus Ohio- I am visiting the North Market, which is a wonderful collection of independent restaurateurs, grocers, and butchers in one neat old building!  I'd never been to Columbus (or even Ohio!), but I was very impressed with the town, the people, and the culinary opportunities...

Most major, and even middle-sized communities are now like this: they have Whole Foods, Trader Joes, or some such marketer that supplies REAL FOOD in lieu of the processed crap that has become, lamentably, mainstream in the past few decades.  If YOU live in a major metropolis, you don't need to lament- real food is available now in metro areas easily- fresh, or frozen fruits and vegetables, meats, even grass-fed are readily available prepared and ready to eat! The only variable??

YOU!

You just need to choose REAL FOODS!  No boxes of "helpers", no "Ultra pasteurized", or "radiated" need to be chosen- vote with your dollars!  Real, Raw, minimally processed foods are ALL that we should eat.  This will get the attention of the food providers better than any proselytizing we could ever do- if the providers really believe that we only want REAL food- they will, finally, and reluctantly, move in that direction.

Processed, nutrition-less foods are much more profitable, and so they are reluctant to leave them behind...  there will be a backlash from the mainstream big-food grain cartels, Pharmaceutical companies and the American Medical Association that they support...

A BIG BACKLASH!!  Get ready!!

Lots of misinformation will be coming our way in the next decade or so!

Stick to your guns:

Real food.
Real exercise.
Real sleep.
Real relaxation and community with family and friends.

Medicine and medical professionals, i.e. Doctors, Dentists, Optometrists should be kept to a BARE MINIMUM!!

Go Old Westerns: you only see the old "sawbones" when you are shot, broke a limb, or you need a tooth extracted.  Otherwise, you STAYED AWAY and took care of yourself!!

SO, STICK TO YOUR GUNS!

"Have Paleo Will Travel!"

Visualized resistance.  Most of us have never, or only briefly heard of, or understood the term.  Charles Atlas, and the old "kick sand in the skinny guy's face" comes to mind...

The truth is, this is the best, simplest, and most natural way to get and stay in shape!

You simply FLEX, just like those comic-book like bodybuilders do, but you do it in motion, for instance you do a slow biceps curl, without weights, but supply the resistance internally, as you slowly curl your arm up towards your shoulder, you flex really hard every inch of the way!

This is actually harder, believe it or not, than actually curling a barbell of dumb bell!  (If you do it correctly!)  Because you supply the resistance, there is no cheating- you work to the max every inch of the way up, and down!!

Try a few reps this way- I usually do 6 or 7, curling both arms at once...

I guarantee you will feel every inch of the exercise, and there will be NO danger of cheating, or of back injury from "swinging" and cheating the weight up - only pure, productive effort!

This manner of exercise can be repeated, easily, anywhere you choose, to great productive effect!

Just do exercises for each muscle group, and your total body will be energized, exercised to the max, and stimulated to greater strength and hypertrophy!

I will add exercises soon, in a sequence that I follow, that can be easily incorporated into your daily routine.  I promise!!

For now, just go to www.transformetrics.com

The exercises are all there, and discussed, dissected, and just plain Done!

Barbarian fitness and nutrition!

Another designation I have always had for Paleo Quick Start nutrition and exercise is "barbarian fitness".
I know that this just makes people think somewhat negatively about the concept: I mean, weren't barbarians just stupid, and not really "civilized"?

Well, that's right!

Think of barbarians as living on the "outskirts" of ancient civilizations; primarily Rome.  Germanic tribes were predominant, but there were others; the Celts, the Thracians- many others.

I imagine that they respected the civilized achievements of those Romans, but were highly suspect of the other, what they would have seen as decadent aspects of that same civilization!

I think, as Paleo folk, we are kin to the barbarians:

Living on the outskirts of a civilization that we realize has become... decadent.
Poisoning the environment, lacking in morals, even eating foods that are sadly lacking in the nutrition needed by vital, active humans- barbarians are willing to AVAIL themselves of the benefits of civilization, but are also all too aware of the drawbacks of the lifestyle- the Neolithic grains, the relinquishing of basic human rights to an aristocracy and priestly class- the subservience of civilized stratified life!

So, as "barbarian fitness" practitioners, we should imagine ourselves as living "on the edge" of a corrupt empire, taking advantage where we can from it's bounty, but also cutting ourselves off from the many corrupt shortcomings that have settled into it's workings...

Take the BEST of civilization, and PRESERVE the best of our hunter/gatherer forebears_

This is the role of the BARBARIAN!

To take the best of both worlds.  A kind of hunter/gatherer- civilized person amalgam.

Movnat!

movnat.com

Check out the above link!  Erwan LeCorre is the originator of the Movnat, or "move naturally" movement.
His idea is that modern humans of civilization have become "Zoo Humans", functioning in an artificial, man-made environment.  This deprives us of much of our natural habitat, meaning the natural world, i.e. woods, fields, grass, etc. that our ancestors dealt with for millennia, and which would have been profoundly instrumental in determining how we evolved, and why we are now built and think the way we do.

Take a zoo animal out of the wild, and he is "out of his element"!

We, children of Western civilization, are physically at least, "out of our element".

At Movnat, they have classes that teach people how to move, both themselves and other objects in nature with efficiency and natural elegance.  This is great!

But I believe that we all have within us the ability to "relearn" what we need to do... naturally!

Each Sunday, I have been moving naturally around my several acres...  jogging, walking, and then sprinting!  All barefoot, and mindfully, meaning that you simply pay attention totally to what you are doing, and live in the moment!


That alone is enough to return you to an ancient "play space" that is so important to the human genome- play is where we get in touch with who we really are.

After I sprint several times, I am winded and tired, almost like doing high reps of heavy squats in the old days...
but, instead of being "totalled", I am energized and happy!


And then,  I go and throw some boulders and stones around, for distance, chin myself from tree limbs,  and walk and run more for fun...


I feel free; not like a "zoo human" at all.

The perfect Paleo Quick Start Exercise protocol?

Just move naturally!  Around a park, around your yard, even around a ROOM!
Crawl, jump, chin yourself; just explore natural movement.

Outside in real, honest-to-God nature is by far the best, though!

Through rain, sleet, snow, and dark of night...

Real food, real music!

Our modern world has become "disconnected" to reality in the past 50 years or so. This process has been accelerating of late even more, to the extent that:

1. Most modern Americans eat increasingly less and less... REAL FOOD!
Instead, packaged, pasteurized, processed sugars and grains in pretty packages are replacing our traditional diet of meats, fats, vegetables and fruits.

It is amazing how much modern marketing can accomplish, in getting us all to give up what has worked nutritionally for many, many thousands of years! And what has this substitution of foods given us in return?

Cancer, heart disease, diabetes, acne, dry skin, failing eyesight and cataracts,,, most of the diseases of modern civilization!

2. Most modern Americans don't produce their own music any more- and what they listen to is not really music, per se! More like "Techno screaming" would be my term for it- nothing like the around-the-campfire, "roots" based singing that has sustained us spiritually since at least Homer's time, and undoubtedly long, long preceding.

Again- hype and marketing can obscure what is really good to us, making us think it is corny or "old fashioned". And what has this substitution of really music given us?

Moral breakdown, crime, idolization of criminals, destruction of the work ethic, family disintegration- all the moral and mental decay of modern civilization!

The solution to both problems is surprisingly simple:

Return to real music, and real food!
So, no wheat and no sugar. No "fake" processed foods. (Colas, juices, etc.)

Likewise, no "rap", hip-hop, or heavy metal; no "techno screaming" fake music.

A good summation is this:
"Don't eat or listen to anything that your great grandparents would not eat or listen to!"

Paleo Quick Start- Now formatted for Kindle!

Yes, Paleo Quick Start, by your inimitable Paleojay, is now available from Amazon, for the Kindle!

For $2.99!

This means you can download the book to your Kindle, or your Kindle App on your iPad or iPhone, and have access to the whole book, wherever and whenever. And, although not all of the links are immediately accessible via the Kindle, and the pictures are black-and-white...

it is automatic to sync the book to your iPad or iPhone via the Kindle App-
and then you have it ALL!

Even though agriculture had some negative factors for our health...

Isn't technology wonderful??