SURFGYM

Five foundation resistance exercises to build base strength.

surfmason — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:25:28 +0000

They say good houses need to be built on a solid foundation. Building a strong body is no different; you need to build a strong base focusing on the largest muscle groups to start with.

There are fancier videos on Surfgym, but we recommend going back to basics from time to time.

This clip from The Eyeopener features five foundation strength exercises with in-depth instruction.

Dumbbell squats

Dumbbell incline press

Lat pull downs

Lunges

Abdominal crunches

No equipment required: Shoulder workout routine.

surfmason — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:24:57 +0000

The shoulders are a difficult muscle group to target without using resistance. These four shoulder defining exercises demonstrated by Sean Vigue of http://www.seanviguefitness.com are perfect for outdoor or indoor bodyweight training.

We recommend adding this routine to your bodyweight core and lower body strengthening exercises, for a full body routine you can perform anytime, anywhere.

Plank with Medicine Ball Knee Tuck: Adaptable fitness equipment

surfmason — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:52:35 +0000

The medicine ball is a truly adaptable piece of gym equipment. It can be used for a variety of upper and lower body exercises as well as numerous core and sports specific movements.

This clip from NikeWomen is an adaptation on the plank exercise which turns it into a challenging and advanced core exercise.

11 Minute Full Body Workout Routine: Advanced metabolic conditioning session

surfmason — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 19:46:45 +0000

We have purposely not featured any of Zuzana’s videos before. This was a decision based on the sexualized way they were promoted on YouTube, not on the quality of the content. We felt the choice of the images used in the video thumbnails, and the overuse of the word sexy, did not promote wellbeing or female body-image positively.

Zuzana has now moved in her own direction with her own channel called ZuzkaLight and is no longer recording clips for Bodyrock. We like the new channel, and there is no denying the quality of the videos and the professional choreography of the routines. Hopefully the positive start continues.

This is an excellent metabolic conditioning routine for increasing cardiovascular fitness, strength and muscular definition.

Ditch the gym with equipment free exercises: Broad Jump Burpees

surfmason — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 19:00:55 +0000

Broad jump burpees are an excellent exercise for building explosive power and of course for increasing jump height. By adding a body twist while in flight with different landing configurations, you can also improve balance, stability and agility.

This video clip from WorkoutDojo is an excellent example. Ditch the gym and train outdoors equipment free!

Series of stretches to lengthen and relax the muscles of the back.

surfmason — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 16:55:10 +0000

This video by Ben Mac is designed to improve spinal strength. Created for bodyboarders the stretches are ideal for all sports people and fitness enthusiasts.

As everyone knows who has had a back injury, it can be extremely frustrating and lead to long training lay-offs. Back strengthening and increased flexibility will help to prevent injury and increase performance objectives.

Gym equipment required: Towel and fitball.

Total Body Toning Workout Using Light Dumbbells and Body Weight Exercises

surfmason — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 16:30:55 +0000

Cassy is well-known for her Pilates videos, so its good to see her mixing up the routines with a full body sculpting session. Filmed outdoors this workout video from BlogilatesTV is a good cardio and strength mash-up.

In terms of fitness equipment you will need two sets of dumbbells, light and heavy (depending on your strength). Ditch the gym and head outdoors.

Foundation jump rope routine with body weight exercises.

surfmason — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:16:33 +0000

Still one of the best workouts available is the jump rope routine. There is a reason it is has been used by boxers for decades, and it’s not because it’s a cheap piece of gym equipment. Intense jump rope routines burn body fat, increase cardiovascular fitness and help to improve balance and agility.

This featured clip from FitnessBlender is a good example of a cross over routine incorporating additional body weight exercises. The actual jump rope exercises are too slow for experienced jump ropers as they don’t involve quick feet or fast revolutions. But, for those who are new to jump rope training, it’s a very good foundation workout.

Ladder Drills For Speed and Agility Training

surfmason — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:16:49 +0000

The plyometrics, speed or agility ladder is a favourite of ours. It can be used as a warm-up exercise or as full speed and agility training session. The featured clip by SKLZvidz demonstrates eleven different drills. As it is a mobile piece of equipment it is perfect for outdoor sessions with your crew.

Ladders were considered primarily a sports specific training apparatus for many years but are now a mainstream piece of fitness equipment. They are even used as a fun exercise to entice young people into exercise.

You can also incorporate upper body exercises as demonstrated in the clip below.