LHM-BodyWeight

LEGAL © 2009 Elliott Hulse & Mike Westerdal All Rights Reserved. International Copyright www.LeanHybridMuscle.com This publication is fully copyrighted and does not come with giveaway or resale rights. You may not sell or redistribute this report. It is reserved solely for paid members of LeanHybridMuscle.com. Copyright and illegal distribution violations will be prosecuted. This document has been watermarked with a digital GPS identification tag.

NOTICE The information presented is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor a substitute for medical treatment, nor as an alternative to medical advice. This publication is presented for information purposes, to increase the public knowledge of developments in the field of strength and conditioning. The program outlined herein should not be adopted without a consultation with your health professional. Use of the information provided is at the sole choice and risk of the reader. You must get your physician’s approval before beginning this or any other exercise program.

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS About Mike Westerdal, CPT Mike Westerdal is a personal trainer and amateur powerlifter residing in sunny Clearwater, FL. Mike is a contributor to REPS! Magazine and Powerlifting USA. He is also the founder of CriticalBench.com one of the Internet's largest muscle building sites. About Elliott Hulse, CSCS Elliott Hulse is a certified strength and conditioning specialist. He is a professional strongman and owner of Strength Camp Sports Training facility in St. Petersburg, FL. Coach Hulse is also a featured columnist for Men's Fitness Magazine.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS Best Of All Worlds – Hybrid Training The Type-III Super Muscle Fiber Getting the Primal Edge The Hybrid Spectrum Chart Hybrid Body Weight Training Hybrid Body Weight Guidelines Training Weeks 1-4 Training Weeks 5-8 Blank Training Log Chart Corrective Stretching – Warm Up – Flexibility Exercise Definitions Our Secret Language – Glossary How Mike And Elliott Teamed Up

pg. 5 pg. 8 pg. 15 pg. 19 pg. 20 pg. 25 pg. 27 pg. 32 pg. 36 pg. 37 pg. 48 pg. 63 pg. 70

Disclaimer: You must get your physician’s approval before beginning this exercise program. These recommendations are not medical guidelines but are for educational purposes only. You must consult your physician prior to starting this program or if you have any medical condition or injury that contraindicates physical activity. This program is designed for healthy individuals only. The information in this report is meant to supplement, not replace, proper exercise training. All forms of exercise pose some inherent risks. The editors and publishers advise readers to take full responsibility for their safety and know their limits. Before practicing the exercises in this book, be sure that your equipment is well-maintained, and do not take risks beyond your level of experience, aptitude, training and fitness. The exercises and dietary programs in this book are not intended as a substitute for any exercise routine or treatment or dietary regimen that may have been prescribed by your physician. See your physician before starting any exercise or nutrition program. If you are taking any medications, you must talk to your physician before starting any exercise program, including Lean Hybrid Muscle. If you experience any lightheadedness, dizziness, or shortness of breath while exercising, stop the movement and consult a physician. Don’t perform any exercise unless you have been shown the proper technique by a certified personal trainer or certified strength and conditioning specialist. Always ask for instruction and assistance when lifting. Don’t perform any exercise without proper instruction. Always do a warmup prior to strength training and interval training. You must have a complete physical examination if you are sedentary, if you have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or diabetes, if you are overweight, or if you are over 30 years old. Please discuss all nutritional changes with your physician or a registered dietician. If your physician recommends that you don’t use Lean Hybrid Muscle, please return the Report for a full refund.


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THE BEST OF ALL WORLDS – HYBRID TRAINING

Of all the training philosophies hybrid muscle training may be the least well-known. Ask most guys at the gym about it and you’re likely to get not much more than a confused look. I guarantee that before long, that will change and you’ll hear more and more guys talking about the incredible results they’ve gotten from hybrid training. Let’s take a closer look at what it is and how it can ramp up your training results. http://www.LeanHybridMuscle.com - All Rights Reserved

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The general definition of “hybrid” is combining two or more different things, aimed at achieving a particular objective or goal. For our purposes, the goal of hybrid training would be to take all the good stuff from the training philosophies we’ve been talking about, leaving the “cons” aside. In other words, hybrid training has all the best aspects of the common training philosophies, without the negatives—or cons. It’s really a win-win situation. So you’re thinking, “Okay, that’s great. But I still don’t know what it is.”

By definition, we could combine any of number of training philosophies and have a hybrid training program. But for our purposes, we have a specific goal in mind, which is the development of a hybrid muscle fiber. We’ll talk more about that in the next chapter. For the goals that we want to achieve, the hybrid training that we’re going to discuss is one that combines both resistance and cardio activities. By combining the two in this body weight program, we’re able to put on lean muscle and burn unwanted body fat at the same time.

The other cool part about this approach is the fact that hybrid training works in harmony with our bodies. Remember that our bodies are still living in the Stone Age so, by their very nature, they’re going to respond best to movements, activities, and regimens that mimic things our ancestors did every day. Training


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with your body weight is about as primal as it gets. Mankind has been training this way for thousands of years.

Our goal is to increase the mitochondrial density of our muscle fibers. Mmitochondria are the cellular power plants—as their density increases, more fuel is delivered to the cells at a greater pace. This essentially enables our TypeI, Type-IIA, and Type-IIB muscle fibers to “morph” into Type-III muscle fibers, which are stronger, more powerful, and more resistant to fatigue than the others. Training our muscle fibers to behave like Type-III hybrid muscle fibers sets the stage for developing a lean, muscular physique in less time. Let us take a close look.


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THE TYPE-III SUPER MUSCLE FIBERS

Our bodies are not made of just one sort of muscle fiber—there are actually different types. Our muscles are made up of three basic types of muscle fiber: Type-I, Type-IIA, and Type-IIB. Each of these fibers reacts differently to physical activities such as performing cardio or resistance training. The Type-I fiber is known as a slow-twitch (ST) fiber, meaning that it contracts slowly. Slowtwitch fibers also have a high resistance to fatigue. Both of the Type-II fibers are fast-twitch fibers (FT-A and FT-B), meaning that they have a quicker contraction time than Type-I fibers. But unlike Type-I fibers, they have a low resistance to fatigue.


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But did you know that there is another type of muscle fiber that we don’t often hear about? Well, it exists. And it’s known as Type-IIC, or Type-III, muscle fiber and what’s so amazing about it is that it behaves like a combination of the other muscle fiber types. Let’s talk about the different types of muscle fibers, including Type-III.

Each person has his/her own unique combination of the different muscle fiber types. The specific combination of muscle fiber types that each person has determines how well he/she is suited for different physical activities. That’s why it’s easier for some guys to gain muscle than others. Guys who are high in slowtwitch fibers and lower in both the fast-twitch fibers are better suited to performing aerobic activities for long periods. They’re the guys who are natural born longdistance runners and swimmers. That’s because the slow-twitch fibers are really resistant to fatigue.

On the flip side, guys who are high in fast-twitch fibers and low in slowtwitch fibers aren’t usually the ones you see running marathons. These guys are natural born weight lifters. It can be broken down even further—the composition of Type-IIA and Type-IIB fibers determine the particular type of weight training activities that are the best match for each person. Type-IIB fibers produce more power than Type-IIA and Type-I fibers but they are also highly sensitive to fatigue


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so they’re recruited when doing explosive movements for short periods. The Type-IIA fibers produce more power than Type-I fibers but nothing like Type-IIB.

Each person has his or her own unique composition of the three different types of muscle fibers. The specific combinations in each person are determined by genetics. As a rule, these are things we can’t change about ourselves. You can’t change the natural color of your eyes or skin, or how tall you are. Genetic characteristics are hardwired and determined before we’re even born so there just isn’t much we can do to change those things. But what if there is something you can do about the composition of muscle fibers in your body? And what about the Type-III muscle we mentioned before? What happened to that? Well, we’re going to tell you about that muscle fiber right now and this is where it really gets interesting.

Type-III muscle fibers are really a hybrid of sorts, having the best characteristics of the other three fibers. They’re great for explosive movements and power that come from Types-IIA and IIB, plus they’ve got some of the aerobic endurance characteristics of Type-I muscle fibers. Sounds great, huh? Well they are—the problem is that generation after generation of “easy living” has all but wiped out this incredible hybrid muscle fiber from our bodies. Think about it—our ancestors lived very differently from how we live today. Their lifestyles


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were physically demanding and their very survival depended on their physical abilities like strength, speed, and endurance.

Except for the occasional bar fight, we don’t really have to worry about that today, so we don’t really have a need for these hybrid muscle fibers. But if our ancestors were able to develop them, then why can’t we? The good news is that modern guys can develop Type-III hybrid muscle fibers. The secret to pulling it off lies in how you train. And to build Type-III hybrid muscle like our ancestors did, you have to train like our ancestors would have lived their everyday lives.


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Hybrid training enables us to build muscle and burn fat at the same time by building the Type-III muscle fiber that we’ve talked about. This, we know, is a cross between Type-I (slow twitch) and Type-IIB (fast twitch) muscle fibers or, in other words, a hybrid muscle. What it actually does is reconfigure existing muscle fibers by increasing mitochondrial density. Mitochondria are our cells’ powerhouses. They supply most of the cells’ supply of ATP, which is the fuel that cells need. By combining resistance training, such as muscle training and strength training, with cardio training in the same set, we force the thicker stronger Type-II muscle fibers to behave more like Type-I fibers.

What really happens is that we “train” ordinary muscle fibers to behave more like Type-III muscle fibers. In other words, we’re literally “resetting” the genetic limits of the muscle. With more mitochondrial density, more nutrients can be processed and these Type-III muscle fibers have a greater capacity to grow bigger and resist fatigue for longer periods.

What we’re talking about here isn’t just novel theory but something that a number of highly-respected fitness experts have investigated and studied. One of these is Len Schwartz, who pioneered the concept of “long strength,”


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which is “the ability to exert significant strength for an extended period of time.” John Parillo was another proponent of the long strength concept. Both men developed training strategies specifically designed to increase mitochondrial density and essentially reconfigure the fiber composition of the working muscle groups. Eventually, the muscles develop long strength and actually “morph” into Type-III muscle fiber.

Ori Hofmekler is the third training expert who became a firm believer of the long strength concept. Ori developed a weight training system that he called, “Controlled Fatigue Training.” According to Ori, this type of training helped develop these super-hybrid muscles—ones that were capable of generating and sustaining strength for extended periods.

What these three men had in common is that each of their developments were various forms of hybrid training. In other words, they mimicked the way that our ancestors used to live. They didn’t train with weights one day and run laps the next. No. The kinds of activities they did every day would have been very much like the hybrid training we’re talking about.


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Our ancestors were both muscular and lean and it didn’t result from things they set out intentionally to do but rather, it was a natural byproduct of the way they lived their lives. They were able to both build muscle and burn fat at the same time without even having to consciously think about. By adopting some of the very same training principles that they employed, modern man can achieve the same results.


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GETTING THE PRIMAL EDGE

Nature is amazing. Plants, animals, humans, insects, and ecosystems, left on their own, over time, adapt to their environment to not just exist, but to thrive. Each species is created to do whatever it does best. For example, carnivores like wolves, lions, and tigers are built to hunt and kill. They’re strong and fast with sharp teeth and powerful jaws. All this happens naturally. When they are born, their parents don’t sit them down and explain to them what they have to do to become skilled hunters—they just go about living their lives and they develop that way naturally.

Animals in nature don’t go to the gym. They don’t lift weights, they don’t do cardio, they don’t read about the latest hot training routine, and they don’t go on diets. Yet, despite the fact that they don’t do any of these things, wolf cubs, lion


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cubs, and others, grow up to be skilled hunters with lean but incredibly strong bodies. Why? Because they live their lives the way nature intended, doing the activities that nature intended them to be doing without giving it any thought. It’s like this throughout nature, with all species. What does this have to do with building a better body? A lot. Why should you care? I am going to tell you why.

Over the last thousand years or so man has gotten soft. By nature, we’re hunter-gatherers, meaning that our bodies are built both to hunt and to forage for food—we kind of get the best of both worlds. But as our society has become more civilized we’ve moved away from doing the things that nature intended our bodies to be doing.

As a result, for the most part, we’ve become flabby, soft, and out-of-shape. We don’t have to hunt down animals and kill them with our bare hands or with simple tools and we don’t have to traverse long distances, searching for fruits, vegetables, and nuts. When we did have to do those things every day in order to survive, we developed naturally lean and strong bodies—without even thinking about it.

Today though, we go to the gym, use machines, moon over the latest fad diet or hot new supplement. And what’s the result? More people than ever before are overweight or obese. Our intellect and knowledge have grown exponentially


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yet, overall, we’re in progressively worse shape than at any time in our history. What’s the problem? I’ll tell you what the problem is—it’s us. When man intervenes things start to get all mucked up.

We’ve moved away from living the way nature intended us to live. We train at the gym doing exercises that are unnatural and wonder why we don’t get results. Our ancestors didn’t do this yet they thrived. Look at the warrior cultures like the Spartans, the Vikings, the Roman Gladiators, and others. They didn’t have gyms but they developed lean, powerful, muscular bodies. They got that way because they did what they had to do to survive. They trained every day not doing isolated, contrived movements, but using compound movements that incorporated a variety of training styles and they developed real-world skills.

Our ancestors didn’t order carry-out food. If they were hungry they had to go out and forage or hunt. And while doing this, sometimes they got chased by wolves, bears, or other humans. Food had to be carried across distances. If they killed a bear, they probably had to drag it a long ways back to camp. The warrior cultures did the same thing—trekking across the land wearing their heavy battle gear and lugging cumbersome weapons, supplies, and even wounded soldiers. These are the kinds of activities that our bodies were built to do. When we did those things on a daily basis, we just naturally got the best results without even thinking about it. Our ancestors, the hunter/gatherers and the warrior cultures,


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developed into what they were and thrived because if they didn’t, they would have perished.

If we today want to see the same kind of results and be lean, muscular, strong, and healthy, we need to stop looking for the magic bullet and look to our past. We need to get primal and train the way nature intended our bodies to train. To get really healthy and get the bodies we want we need to exercise the way our ancestors lived by getting primal in our workouts. So how’s a modern guy supposed to “get primal” in his workout? One of the best ways to train like our ancestors is by following training strategies from this Lean Hybrid Muscle Body weight Training system. This is a program designed to bring us all back to our roots. Training this way for the eight week program will help your flexibility, your conditioning, muscle tone and you’ll burn a lot of fat in the process.


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The Lean Hybrid Muscle – Body Weight Program Water Type Workout - #1 on the Hybrid Spectrum

For Videos Explaining This Chart Refer To These Web Pages: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOMm4P2rrZM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9wVFrhOjOE


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HYBRID BODY WEIGHT TRAINING

We hear a lot about hybrids these days—hybrid cars, hybrid buses and even hybrid planes. The idea of the “hybrid” is to take the very best aspects of different ideas, concepts or approaches and combine them into a single, cohesive unit. The finished product—the hybrid—has the best features of the other elements and more important, functions better than any of the others do on their own. The hybrid concept is the same no matter what the field— transportation, electronics, plants and even physical fitness. Like other hybrids models, Hybrid Body Weight Training takes the best aspects of regular body weight training and combines them with hybrid training to


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produce results far superior to those that you could achieve through body weight training alone. Body weight training is of course training that instead of free weights or machines, uses the weight of the body to provide resistance and drive gains. Common body weight exercises include push-ups, pull-ups, body weight squats, sit-ups, crunches and hanging leg raises, just to name a few. Body weight training is a good way to build muscle strength and get lean, not to get massive. Gymnasts do a lot of body weight training, which is why they are lean and defined, but not huge. They are pretty strong though—just notice how seemingly effortless it is for them to lift and support their body weight with just one arm, or whatever other body part the movement calls for them to use.

One of the really appealing aspects of body weight training is that it can be done just about anywhere. You don’t have to have an expensive gym


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membership or access to specialized equipment to be able to do it. With nothing more than basic supplies that many people have around the house already, you’re good to go. Another positive attribute of body weight training is that it is an excellent way to build up functional strength. What this means is that you’re developing muscle strength by performing compound movements that simultaneously involve multiple body parts while also incorporating other skills like flexibility and balance. It’s that functional strength that enables a petite female gymnast to balance her entire body weight on one hand while performing reverse kicks or some other complex movement. For the guy who wants to be not only strong but big too, body weight training by itself is not going to produce the results you want to see. It can however, be highly beneficial to incorporate some body weight training into your routine, especially if you perform hybrid body weight training. First, mixing in some hybrid body weight training can help you lean out and can provide some nice definition—you know, so you can really very clearly see the outline of each muscle group. It’s also a great way to mix things up once in a while. By nature, our bodies quickly get used to our training routines. When that happens, the gains first slow and eventually come to a halt. This is commonly known as a plateau. Adding in some hybrid body weight training can help you break through a plateau and even better—avoid them entirely. So what makes a regular body weight workout a “hybrid” body weight training routine? There are actually several parts to the answer to this question. http://www.LeanHybridMuscle.com - All Rights Reserved

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First, it involves combining multiple movements into a single exercise. The second important component is that you also need to incorporate endurance as well. By combining these elements, the muscles are continually forced to adapt, with the end result being the development of hybrid type III muscle fibers which have both strength and endurance. Ordinary muscle fibers typically only have one of three primary properties: strength, power or endurance. And that’s exactly what this program has been designed to do— emphasize the best elements of gymnastics and body weight training while also addressing the fact that some guys want to be defined and lean. Nearly all of the exercises can be performed using just body weight alone. A few of them call for the use of weights like dumbbells or kettle bells. If you’d like, you can also ramp them up by wearing ankle weights or a weighted vest. In any case, hybrid body weight training is definitely something that you ought to be including as part of your routine. Weight Vest >>> Click Here To Get Yours

Instead of heavy body armor, those of us who want to train like a warrior can purchase a weight vest to achieve the same goal. Weight vests range from about 25 pounds all the way up to 100 pounds. You wear them when you’re doing any type of activity to add a serious level of resistance. Here are some examples of exercises that can be significantly ramped up with a weight vest: jogging, dips, pull-ups, push-ups, squats, lunges, sprints, climbing up stairs, and


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even jumping rope. Using the vest, you are essentially “tricking” your body into believing that it has gained weight, causing it to work harder. The result is that your conditioning level will improve and your strength, power, and quickness will also improve.

How’s This For An Old School Weight Vest? Remember that you want to progress in this exercise. If you haven’t done sprints in years don’t put a weight vest on and do sprints, your knees and joints may not be ready for it. Start with walking and gradually increase the difficulty. If you want to save some money, put some sand or weights in a backpack and wear that when you go hiking or walking.

Wearing a heavy military backpack and hiking up a mountain could be a level 5 on the hybrid spectrum. However wearing a 10-pound backpack during a leisurely walk might be a level 1 on the hybrid spectrum. Ankle weights can also be worn to add resistance to any activity that you partake in.


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HYBRID BODY WEIGHT TRAINING GUIDELINES

Disclaimer: See your physician before starting any exercise or nutrition program. You must have a complete physical examination if you are sedentary, if you have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or diabetes, if you are overweight, or if you are over 30 years old. Please discuss all nutritional changes with your physician or a registered dietician.


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Each phase of this program will be performed for 4 weeks.

You can skip either Day 4 or Day 6 if you need extra active recovery days.

You must completely rest 1 day per week. It is a good idea to use this day to do some foam rolling (see Foam Rolling Guide at the end of this manual) or other active recovery methods.

Exercises are programmed in pairs or in circuits.

Each pair of exercises is called a “Superset”. In each Superset, do one set of the first exercise (A1), rest 20 seconds, and then perform the next exercise (A2). Rest 1-2 minutes and then repeat, starting with the first exercise again.

For all circuits, complete each exercise one after the other with no rest between each. Rest 1 minute at the end of the circuit before repeating.

Go through each circuit 1-5 times.


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The number in the brackets beside each bodyweight circuit exercise indicates the number of reps per side (if it is a one limb movement).

Finish each workout with corrective stretching for the tight muscle groups only.

Never skip a warm up! Jumping Jacks x 10 Split Jacks x 10 Seal Jacks x 10 High Knee Skips High Knee Tucks High Knee Run Butt Kick Run Figure 4 Straight Leg March Walking Lunges Backwards Lunges Backwards Skips Backwards Run Over Head Squats x 10 Walk outs x 5


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**DAY 1 ** 60 yard sprints x 6 w/ 30 seconds rest in between sets, before training. A1. Band Deadlift 3 x 8 A2. Band Push Ups 3 x 8 B1. Single Leg Squats 3 x 8 each leg B2. Glute Ham Raise (on bench or w/ partner) 3 x 15 C1. Over Head Squats x 25 C2. Walking Lunges x 30 steps C3. Inch Worms x 8 C4. Single Leg Good Mornings x 10 each leg C5. Knees To Bows x 10 REPEAT C1 - C5, 3-5 times with 1 minute rest between circuits.


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**DAY 2 - Conditioning** Burpees: perform 1 minute on with 30 seconds rest for 20 minutes.

**DAY 3 ** A1. Chin Ups 2 x as many as possible A2. Dips 2 x as many as possible B1. Jumping Jacks x 100 B2. Spiderman Push Ups x 8 each way B3. Bicycle Crunches x 40 B4. Swing Jack Knife x 15 B5. Wheel Rollouts x 10

REPEAT B1 - B5, 3-5 times with 1 minute rest between circuits.


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**DAY 4 – OFF** Skip Rope: Perform 20 seconds on with 5 seconds rest for 15 minutes

**DAY 5** A1. Split Squats 3 x 12 each leg A2. Inverted Rows 3 x 12 B1. Close Grip Push Ups x 15 B2. Walking Lunges x 30 steps B3. Swing Curls x 15 B4. Burpees x 15 B5. Knees To Bows x 10 REPEAT B1 - B5, 3-5 times with 1 minute rest between circuits.


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**DAY 6** 100 yard sprints x 10 with 30 second rest in between

**DAY 7 – OFF** We really take pride in our OFF days… Do nothing more than stretching or foam rolling with lots of rest.


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**DAY 1 ** 40 yard sprints x 10 w/ 30 seconds rest in between sets, before training. A1. Pistol Squats (or Split Squats) 3 x 8 each leg A2. Close Grip Push Ups 3 x 15 B1. Single Leg Good Morning 3 x 8 each leg B2. Inverted Rows 3 x 15 C1. Jumping Jacks x 100 C2. Burpees x 20 C3. Swing Curls x 15 C4. Glute Ham Raise x 15 C5. Step Ups x 15 each leg REPEAT C1 - C5, 3-5 times with 1 minute rest between circuits.


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**DAY 2 - Conditioning** Inchworms: perform 1 minute on with 30 seconds rest for 20 minutes.

**DAY 3 ** A1. Chin Ups 3 x as many as possible A2. Hand Stand Push Ups 2 x as many as possible B1. B2. B3. B4. B5.

Mountain Climbers x 30 each side Inverted Rows x 15 V Ups x 40 Single Leg Extensions x 15 each leg Wheel Rollouts x 10



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**DAY 4 – OFF** Jumping Jacks: Perform 20 seconds on with 5 seconds rest for 15 minutes

**DAY 5** A1. Over Head Squats 3 x 25 A2. Bear Crawls 3 x 50 yards B1. B2. B3. B4. B5.

Close Grip Push Ups x 25 Walking Lunges x 60 steps Swing Curls x 15 Burpees x 15 Knees To Bows x 10



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**DAY 6** 100 yard sprints x 10 with 30 second rest in between

**DAY 7 – OFF** We really take pride in our OFF days… Do nothing more than stretching or foam rolling with lots of rest.

Next Page – Blank Training Log for You to Track Your Progress! Make as many copies as you need and put them in a binder.


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DATE:

DAY:

EXERCISES

SET 1 WEIGHT

REPS

SET 2 WEIGHT

REPS

SET 3 WEIGHT

REPS

SET 4 WEIGHT

REPS

SET 5 WEIGHT

NOTES:


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REPS

CORRECTIVE STRETCHING – WARM UP - FLEXIBILITY

If you’re like a lot of guys, you probably don’t give much thought to doing a pre-workout warm-up. Most guys step into the gym and either launch right into their training or they might do a minimal warm-up before getting started. And by minimal, I do mean minimal—as in spending 30 seconds stretching. If that sounds like you then you really ought to pay attention to what we’re talking about here. Even if you do warm-up before working out, you should still stick around because you might just learn a few things that can power up your workout, reduce injuries, and even improve your recovery.

In any kind of weight training, whether it’s bodybuilding, powerlifting, strongman, or whatever the case may be, the spotlight is always on the results.


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Guys are interested in learning about the latest and greatest workout that will make them stronger, leaner, faster, or more powerful, in the least amount of time. Eye-catching headlines like “bigger biceps in three days,” or “get ripped in two weeks” sell magazines. Fitness writers, publishers, and advertisers know this so it’s no surprise that this is where they focus. That’s why you see lots of articles about “sexy” topics like training routines, diet, and supplementation, but not much else. You don’t see—other than vague generalities—much information about warming up, why it’s important and how it can lead to better and faster results.

If you’re not properly warming up before training, you’re selling yourself short and cheating your workout. Not performing a good thorough warm-up prior to training is one of the most common and costly mistakes I see. The majority of guys fail to recognize its importance and the long-term benefits it offers. Performing a good warm-up will significantly lower the likelihood that you’ll injure yourself and lead to better results, maximizing muscle stimulation and growth. Those two reasons are enough for me. First, an injury will most definitely put a damper on your results—especially if it means that you can’t train for a week, two weeks, or even longer. A proper warm-up can keep you training uninterrupted. And second, who doesn’t want better results? A good warm-up stimulates blood flow, which means more oxygen and muscle-building nutrients are delivered to your muscle fibers.


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Dynamic stretching is one of the best ways I know to warm up before training and, in particular, corrective stretching can be especially effective. This type of stretching differs from ordinary stretching in that it is purposeful and designed to target specific areas where you are tight or having issues. It is a type of static stretching that is very useful for correcting imbalances. Static stretching is performed by reaching forward to a point of tension and holding the stretch for a few seconds. Corrective stretching involves identifying individual areas where you may be having problems or pain. It has long been used by coaches and trainers for injury prevention and performance enhancement. By knowing the proper corrective stretching techniques to address specific problem areas that you’ve identified, you can address the problem and be on the road to recovery without causing further injury.

If you don’t have any specific areas that are troubling you, doing ten minutes or so of Dynamic Flexibility movements before training can be your best route. Dynamic Flexibility movements enhance peak-force output, raising the body’s core temperature giving you a true “warm-up” and preparing the body to go into full drive during your workout. Dynamic warm-ups really get our bodies ready to do whatever it is that we want them to do when we’re training. Besides warming up our bodies, they can dramatically increase our range of motion and stretch our core muscles—each of which is important to maximizing our workout results.


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Dynamic Flexibility movements can also be customized for specific sports and activities. Examples of Dynamic Flexibility stretching movements include lunges, side bends, the Frankenstein walk, high knees, jumping jacks, backpedaling, the scorpion, side lunges, and many more. Overall, they just can’t be beat. Seriously, a pre-workout investment of 10 minutes spent performing Dynamic Flexibility movements will pay huge dividends in fewer injuries, better performance, increased range of motion and flexibility, and it can even help stimulate your metabolism meaning more efficient fat-burning capabilities.

Dynamic warm-ups are the best way to prepare your body for the training session ahead—particularly if you’re going to be doing hybrid muscle training. Ten minutes of dynamic warm-up movements before training can be invaluable.

They not only enhance peak force output but they also raise the body’s core temperature, increase the range of motion and stretch the core muscles— really priming the body. Let’s take a look at some of dynamic warm-up exercises.


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Jumping jacks: This is an old standard. Start with your feet together, arms at your side. Jump up bringing both feet out to your sides while simultaneously raising both arms up in an arcing motion brining them together in an overhead clap. Repeat.

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Seal jacks: This is a twist to an old favorite—the jumping jack. To do this dynamic warm-up exercise you’ve got to think like a seal—not a Navy SEAL, but the seal that lives in the ocean. It’s performed like a regular jumping jack but instead of bringing your arms up and down over your head, you bring them out to the front in a wide clapping motion, just like a happy, clapping seal. While the description sounds a bit silly, don’t be fooled—this is one awesome dynamic warm-up exercise.


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Split jacks: This is another variation of the traditional jumping jack. But in this version, instead of jumping and spreading your legs out to the sides, you jump and land with one leg in front of you and the other behind you, alternating with each jump.

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Skips: This is like an ordinary skip except that you bring your knees up high while simultaneously pumping your arms like pistons up and down.


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High knee tuck: In this one you lift your knee up to your chest and “tuck” it by pulling it tight against your chest.

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Quad stretch walk: For this warm-up you lift your leg behind you grabbing your foot with your hand and giving it a quick upward stretch. Alternate legs as you walk forward.


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Figure four: Stand with your arms at your side, feet shoulder-width apart. Start with your left leg. Lift your knee until your thigh is parallel to the floor while simultaneously using your hand to bring your foot out across your body so that your calf is parallel to the floor. Grab your foot with the opposite hand and give it an upward tug. Return your foot to the ground and repeat with the other leg.

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Straight leg march: March forward bringing your leg straight out and up as high as you can while bringing the opposite arm out trying to touch your foot with your hand. It kind of looks like the way the Soviet soldiers used to march through Red Square.


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

Walking lunges: This is old stand-by. Walk forward lunging until your thigh is just about parallel to the floor and the opposite knee almost touches the floor. Bring your arm up in a pumping motion as you lunge. Repeat with the other leg as you lunge across the room.

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Backward lunge: This is done exactly like the exercise above except it is performed in reverse so your lunging backwards instead of forward. Bring your arm up in a pumping motion as you lunge.

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Backward skip: This is like the skips above except this time, they’re done backwards.


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Backwards reach run: This one is performed very much like the butt-kick run except that it is, of course, done in reverse so you’re moving backwards. Pump your arms as you perform the leg movements.

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Overhead squats: Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width with your hands at the back of your head—like you’re under arrest. Squat down until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Return to the starting position and repeat.


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Walkouts: Stand straight up with your feet shoulder width apart. Bend down until your hands touch the floor. Crawl outward with your hands until your body is parallel to the floor. Your feet remain in the same position— they don’t move. Return to the starting position by “crawling” backwards and repeat.

If you’re having trouble picturing what these dynamic flexibility warm-up exercises might look like check out this video we made for you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWoAJHjIPcQ


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EXERCISES Split Squats

Stand in front of a bench with one foot in front of you and the other one on the bench behind you. Slowly lower you back knee to the ground while bending your front knee. Pause for 1 second and then raise to the starting position. Repeat.

Close Grip Push Ups

Assume a typical push up position. Move your hands inwards until they are directly beneath your shoulders. Lower your body, just like with a normal push up. Return to the starting position. Repeat. http://www.LeanHybridMuscle.com - All Rights Reserved

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Bicycle Crunches

Lie on your back with your hands behind your head. Then simultaneously bring your right elbow to your left knee. Then switch sides. Each rep done consists of both a left and right revolution.

Spiderman Push Ups

Assume a normal push up position, then draw your left knee up and your right hand back. With your limbs in this “staggered” position, lower your body to the ground and then up again. Complete reps in this position and then switch sides.


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Bear Crawls

Get on all fours... and crawl! Do not go to your elbows or knees... stay up on your hands and feet.

Band Dead Lift

Stand with a shoulder width stance and place a large band under your feet. Grab the band with both hands on the sides of your body. Stand up with the band under your feet and in your hands. Return to the starting position. Repeat. Note: Keep back flat not rounded. Look up as you stand up.


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Band Push Ups

Assume a normal push up position. Wrap a band around your back and through your hands. Lower your body under the resistance of the band. Return to the up starting position. Repeat.


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Inchworm

This is a powerful stretch for your hamstrings, so go slow, and don’t round your back. Start in a modified push-up position, with your hands out in front of your shoulders. Keep your legs straight and walk your legs towards your hands. Go until you get a stretch, but don’t round your lower back. Once you get a stretch, walk your hands out until you are in a modified pushup.


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Single Leg Good Mornings

Stand on one leg, knee slightly bent, with your hands behind your head. Keeping your back flat and elbows spread slowly tip over at your hips. Once your upper body is parallel to the ground extend back to the starting position. Repeat several reps and then switch sides.

Knees To Elbows

Grab a chin-up bar with both hands and hang there. Than using your abs, curl your lower body up to the bar. When your elbows touch your knees slowly lower your legs back to the starting position. Repeat.


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Burpees

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Drop down onto your hands and feet, then thrust your feet back so you are in a pushup position. Thrust your feet back in and then stand up. You can add a vertical jump from the bottom position.


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Wheel Rollouts

Using an ab wheel, grab the handles and bring the wheel to your feet. Slowly roll the wheel forward until it hits the wall. Keeping your feet in place, bring the wheel back to the starting position at your feet.

Swing Jack knife

Start in a push up position with your feet up on the swing. Keeping your body flat (do not round your back) bring your knees to your chest. Then extend your legs back out to the original position. Repeat.


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Mountain Climbers

Start in a normal push up position. With a rapid tempo, first bring your right foot up to your right hand. Now bring your left foot up to your left hand. Repeat.

Hand Stand Push Ups

Place both hands in the floor in front of a wall. Using your feet, walk your legs up the wall into a push up position. Slowly lower the top of your head to the ground. Lightly tap the ground with your head and then push your body back up to the starting position. Repeat.


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Single Leg / Pistol Squat

Stand with your feet slightly greater than shoulder-width apart. Pick one foot off the ground and extend that foot forward. Contract your glutes, brace your abs and keep your spine in a neutral position. Extend your arms forward or to the sides to increase your balance. Start the movement at the hip joint. Push your butt back and “sit back as if you were sitting on a chair”. Squat slowly and focus on balance. Squat until your thigh is parallel to the floor, but keep your lower back flat. Push with your buttocks, hamstrings, and quadriceps to return to the start position. Complete all the given repetitions for one leg and then switch.


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Single Leg Hip Extension

Get on your back with your heels up on the bench. Raise your glutes off the floor by squeezing your butt.

Swing Curls

Lie on your back with your heels up on the swing. Raise your glutes off the floor by squeezing your butt. Keeping your hips off the floor bring your heels under your body. Extend fully while keeping your hips off the floor. Repeat.


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Core Holds (front & side)

FRONT HOLD Lie on your stomach on a mat. Raise your body in a straight line and rest your bodyweight on your elbows and toes so that your body hovers over the mat. Keep your back straight and your hips up. Hold (brace) your abs tight. Contract them as if someone was about to punch you in the stomach, but breath normally. Hold this position for the recommended amount of time or 10 seconds if you are doing multiple repetitions. SIDE HOLD Lie on a mat on your right side. Support your bodyweight with your knees and on your right elbow. Raise your body in a straight line so that your body hovers over the mat. Keep your back straight and your hips up. Hold your abs tight. Contract them as if someone was about to punch you in the stomach, but breath normally. Hold this position for the recommended amount of time or 8-10 seconds if you are doing multiple repetitions.


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Inverted or Modified Rows

Set a bar at hip height in the smith machine or squat rack. Lie underneath the bar and grab it a few inches wider than shoulder-width apart. Row yourself up the top position with your upper back and lats. Keep the abs braced and body in a straight line from toes (knees) to shoulders. Slowly return to the start position.

Partner Glute Ham Raise

Kneel on the floor in front of your partner. Have your partner hold your feet down at the heels. Then lower your body to the ground using your hands to brace yourself. Using your hamstrings, pull your torso back to the upright position.


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Chin Ups

Take underhand grip on the bar with the palms facing you. Pull your body up until the chest reaches bar level. Slowly lower yourself but do not let your body swing and do not use momentum.

V Ups

Lie on your back with your arms extended over your head. Simultaneously bring your straight arms and legs up to the top. When you achieve a V position with your body, slowly lower your body back to the starting position.


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Box Jumps

Standing in front of a 24” box; jump upon the box with both feet. Jump backwards off the box to the starting position. Repeat.

Step Ups

Stand in front of a 24” box. Place one foot on top of the box. While leaning into the up leg, push off the foot to elevate your whole body. Slowly lower the opposite leg into the starting position. Repeat on one leg and then o to the other one.


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Band Good Mornings

Wrap a band under your feet and around your neck, like suspenders. Slowly tip over at your hips while keeping your back flat. Once you’ve reached 90 degrees, return to the starting position. Repeat.

Band Squats

Wrap a band under your feet and around your neck, like suspenders. Slowly sink your hips and bend your knees into a squat position. Once you reach the low squat position, return to the starting position. Repeat.


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OUR SECRET LANGUAGE - GLOSSARY

Mitochondrial density: This refers to the number of mitochondria found in the cells. Since mitochondria are what provide the energy our bodies need, to do the things we do, the greater the mitochondrial density, the more energy we have available to work with—this is particularly beneficial to training.

Type-III muscle: Type-III muscle fibers are a hybrid muscle fiber with characteristics of the other three fibers. They’re great for explosive movements and power that come from Types-IIA and -IIB, plus they’ve got some of the aerobic endurance characteristics of Type-I muscle fibers

Sustained strength: This is a particular type of strength that can be sustained over long periods of time as needed.

Long strength: This is “the ability to exert significant strength for an extended period of time.” It is achieved through specific types of hybrid training that incorporate multiple training philosophies.

Hybrid muscle: This is a type of muscle that you develop through training techniques that incorporate bodybuilding, powerlifting, strongman, and cardio


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training philosophies. Hybrid muscle behaves like a combination of the various types of muscle fibers, exhibiting the best characteristics of them all.

Hybrid cardio: This is a type of cardio training that incorporates both aerobic and anaerobic activities. It is used to develop sustained or long strength.

Max effort cardio/conditioning: This is a specific type of cardio training performed at maximum effort for a sustained time period, not just the short bursts you commonly see in interval training. Like hybrid cardio, it fosters the development of sustained or long strength.

Powerbuilding: Powerbuilding is a form of hybrid training that combines elements of both powerlifting and bodybuilding. It’s designed to help you pack on both size and power.

Super Muscle: This is another name for Type-III muscle, which is a hybrid muscle fiber that has characteristics of both slow-twitch and fast-twitch muscle fibers, making them capable of sustaining strength for extended periods of time.

Mitochondria: These are what are known as the cellular powerhouses. Mitochondria produce the energy-rich molecule adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, which fuels all of our activities.


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Strongman: This is a specific type of training where the goal is to perform feats of strength and endurance. Activities might include sled dragging, tire flipping, or tossing large, heavy objects into the air. Strongman is a functional type of training because, to a degree, the activities mimic real-life activities and involve compound movements that recruit multiple muscle groups.

Powerlifting: Another specialized form of training, with the goal of lifting incredibly heavy weights focusing on three key movements—the bench press, the squat, and the deadlift. The training is designed to maximize strength in each of these movements for the performance of one repetition.

Bodybuilding: This type of training emphasizes muscle growth. The goal here is to maximize the appearance of the muscles, not necessarily to improve strength or functionality.

EDT (Escalated Density Training): This is a type of training that is based on the concept of doing more and more work from workout to workout.

Hybrid exercises: These are exercises that seek to take the best of the most well-known training philosophies like powerlifting, bodybuilding, strongman, and


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cardio, taking only the best elements while overcoming the inherent deficiencies of each.

G-flux: G-flux is short for the term “energy flux,” which refers to the amount of energy flowing into and out of our bodies. It’s about achieving a higher level energy balance to maximize muscle growth and fat burning.

Strength endurance: This is another way of referring to hybrid training routines that combine both strength and endurance activities. Progressively increasing the weight and reducing the rest period before sets is one form of strength endurance training.

Type-1: The Type-I muscle fiber is known as a slow-twitch (ST) fiber, meaning that it contracts slowly. Slow-twitch fibers also have a high resistance to fatigue.

Type-2a: This is a fast-twitch fiber, contracting faster than Type-I fibers. These fibers are resistant to fatigue but not as resistant as Type-I fibers.

Type-2b: Also a fast-twitch fiber, these contract quickly and have low resistance to fatigue. Used primarily for short bursts like sprinting.


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Type-2c: This one is interesting—its origins are unknown. Some researchers theorize that it may be an uncommitted primitive fiber with the capacity to develop into either a type-2a or a type-1 fiber.

White fibers: This refers to the fast-twitch muscle fibers that contract faster than red fibers. Type-2b fibers are white fibers. They are less resistant to fatigue than red fibers.

Red fibers: This refers to the slow-twitch muscle fibers that contract slowly and are resistant to fatigue. Red fibers include Type-1 and Type-2a muscle fibers.

Highland games: The Highland games are held at various times throughout the year to celebrate Scottish and Celtic culture. The games began in the Scottish Highlands sometime in the 11th century. Because they’re somewhat similar, the games could be considered forerunners of modern strongman competitions.

Energy flux (g-flux): This is a concept pioneered by John Berardi. It is commonly referred to as g-flux. The idea is to increase both your daily calorie intake and calorie burning capacity to achieve a higher level of fat loss and muscle growth.


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Volume: Volume is the number of sets multiplied by the number of reps per set. If you’re doing a 10 x 10 routine than you’re total volume would be 100 reps.

Rest Interval: The amount of time that occurs between: sets, exercises, complexes, or circuits.

Intensity: For the purpose of this book, intensity refers to the amount of weight used. High intensity would mean heavier weight. Lower intensity would mean using lower weight. This is relative to the person lifting the weight.

Concurrent Periodization: Concurrent means simultaneously and periodization refers to timeframes. With hybrid workouts we look at time periods from three perspectives—a single training session, a micro-cycle (one week), and a macrocycle (multiple weeks).

Micro-Cycle: A micro-cycle consists of one-week of training sessions.

Macro-Cycle: A macro-cycle consists of multiple weeks of training sessions.


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HOW MIKE AND ELLIOTT TEAMED UP

Well, several months ago I met up with my now good friend Elliott Hulse who is the owner of a warehouse gym in my area called Strength Camp. Elliott is a pro strongman by the way. Anyhow, I started watching some of the workouts he was putting his clients through. This wasn’t like anything I had really seen before. They weren’t using your typical gym equipment. They were carrying odd objects, loading sandbags, dragging sleds and doing all kinds of exercises that looked like half resistance training and half cardio training.

I told Elliott I wanted to try some of the “Warrior Training” methods. He grinned and it’s no surprise Elliott and I hit it off right away and started doing some workouts together.


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We’d combine my strength building exercises with his max effort resistance cardio techniques to come up with some pretty sick training sessions. The fat has been melting off and I’m still maintaining my strength for amateur powerlifting so I think it’s safe to say we’re on to something here. It has worked for us and it has worked for others, so it will probably work for you too.

We call this system Lean Hybrid Muscle.

You can learn more about this training style that combines powerlifting, bodybuilding and strongman at this link: http://www.leanhybridmuscle.com/build-muscle.php

If you want to maintain the ripped physique you’ve built with this body weight program but would like to add some more strength and muscle size I think the Lean Hybrid Muscle system will make a nice follow up plan for you.

http://www.leanhybridmuscle.com/build-muscle.php


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LHM-BodyWeight

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