9
Sep, 2020

Breathing and peak flow

Before anyone starts criticising your breathing and setting you weird breathing exercises, make sure they have at the least taken a peak flow reading. This is where you puff down a tube and compare the reading with your height, so you can monitor your lung function. There are too many trainers hanging around who attended an online course and are now taping peoples mouths up while exercising with very little assessment of the science behind it.

Make sure they do some basic assessments first. The peak flow meter is one of those basic tests! You may need breathing drills.

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16
Aug, 2020

DWF:A feta salad and some timing issues

TODAY’S WORKOUT

You’ll need a watch in todays workout which is a fun 10 v sits, 50 meter sprint, 20 squat, rest 1 minute affair. Aim for 5 rounds. Try and keep it sharp and punchy. Sprint the sprin.

We train in our car park so we do a 30m fast run, turn around with a 30m all out sprint back to our exercise mat!

The sprint is useful as it’s short enough to actually build a different pace than the normal shuffle jogs people fall into.

TODAY’S FOOD

Thanks to Leanne for this veggie Feta salad meal: Not far off a 3 block zone meal

To keep up to date with fitness, physical therapy and mindfulness tips join my mailing list here:

5
Aug, 2020

Muted Hip Function

Effective exercise can generate powerful  huge forces  if they are initiated controlled and dominated by the hip.

Many untrained athletes  have a muted hip which  creates postures and mechanics that reduce power output, promotes postures and mechanics that are considered by  many  to be unsound.

In simple terms the Muted Hip Function (MHF) results from the legs  compensating for the failed of the hip, in effect using leg extension  to compensate for non existent hip extension.

According to the Crossfit Journal the causes and consequences of MHF include but are not limited to:

• structurally disadvantaged spinal posture

• low glute recruitment

• low hamstring recruitment

• pelvis abandoning the spine and chasing the legs

• centre of gravity shifting dramatically backward

• centre of balance shifting toward toes

• knee experiencing unsound shear force

• leg extension being the only productive effort

• hip extension not being possible with low hip angle

• pelvis rotating the wrong way

The cure is deliberate and focused training. Thats why you probably need a trainer like me. Why not join the mailing list a get useful information

To keep up to date with fitness, physical therapy and mindfulness tips join my mailing list here:

18
Jan, 2020

Deadlift homework: the Imaginary Bar drill

In the early stages many people struggle with the deadlift. This struggle is down to many factors: hamstring inflexibility, balance, proprioception (or lack of it) or simply, pure “what the hell is this”.

Mastering the move is made harder by the fact that many  people think they can only practice the move in the gym.  If you struggle, more practice is useful, hence the imaginary bar drill.

Focus on holding an imaginary bar, anywhere: at home, at work, in the pub.

Enjoy

If you need help drop me an email Andrew@andrewstemler.com

21
Nov, 2019

The gymnastic dish shape or hollow hold

To have a fantastic core you need to strengthen and engage your core muscles in a move called the dish shape, or the hollow hold.

This video starts you on the road to the perfect dish

I like this move because you can learn it at home!

The value of this move is that it starts you on the road of learning the handstand. You take the shape you have been learning, make the pelvic tilt more obvious,  build it into a plank then walk the plank up the wall!

All at home!

The dish hold

The absolute foundation of gymnastic training is the dish hold, or hollow hold or handstand plank. It’s a super useful skill and a great core and abdominal muscle builder. If you want a L sit, a handstand or a muscle up, you need this!

 

Posture hack

As much as I hate the concept of nailing people into a position, the reality is that after 8 hours a day, every day ,  of desk slumping, you probably don’t know what proper posture means or feels like .

This useful hack helps.

There are  shoulder harnesses on the market, non of which I have tried, but as I had a band in my bag, I gave it a go.

Btw My name is Andrew Stemler. Im a london personal trainer based in Bethnal Green E2. Contact me here