Christopher - The Ultimate Guide to Bodyweight Conditioning

DISCLAIMER

The exercises and advice contained within this book may be too strenuous ordangerous for some people, and the reader should consult with a physicianbefore engaging in them.

The author and publisher of this book are not responsible in any mannerwhatsoever for any injury, which may occur through the use or misuse of theinformation presented here.

"All images, unless otherwise noted, are from my private collection. They are reproduced here under the professional practice of fair use for the purposes of historical discussionand scholarly interpretation. All characters and images remain the property of theirrespective copyright holders

The Ultimate Guide to Bodyweight Conditioning
All Rights Reserved.
Copyright 2014 by Legendary Strength LLC.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,electronicormechanical,including photocopying,recording,orby any informationstorage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Manufactured in the United States of AmericaPublished by:
Logan Christopher
Santa Cruz, California

www.legendarystrength.com
Table of Contents

Introduction1
The False Ideal of the Marathon Runner2
7 Principles of Never Quit Conditioning 9
Anaerobic versus Aerobic9
Strength & Endurance Curve11 Full Body Exercises13 Movement Efficiency14 Control Your Breathing 15 Staying Fresh and Fast17 Progressive Training 19 The Three Conditioning Sets22 Explosive Sprint Sets22 Short Intense Sets23 Long Sets23 Training Styles24 The Benefits of Bodyweight Conditioning 27 Squats29 Jumping 35 Jump Rope39 Burpees44 Running and Hill Sprints47 Circuit Training 52 Wrap Up 55

Welcome to The Ultimate Guide to Bodyweight Conditioning, the fifth book in this series.Here youll learn how to become a conditioning machine using just your own bodyweightto do it.

Well discuss the myths behind the standard definition of cardio training and how thereare much better solutions out there.

Then well cover the seven principles behind this system that guide you to get the best outof your training to build crazy conditioning levels. In my years of studying many differentsystems and experimenting in the gym these seven principles have helped me to build greatconditioning. By following these concepts, and the exercises and workouts built off ofthem, you too can have insane conditioning levels.

From there we translate the principles into three different durations for training and severaldifferent styles of training. These work on the different areas and different aspects ofendurance.

Lastly we show you the specific bodyweight exercises that are best for conditioning.These include running and sprints, jumping rope, squats, jumps, burpees and otherbodyweight training circuits. Included in all these options will be exercises for anyone juststarting out, all the way up to the most elite conditioning levels. Also included here are anumber of workouts, and how you can use them progressively in your training schedule.

So lets get started

When the average person thinks about getting into shape what does their mind immediately go to? If I could run a marathon I would be in great shape. This seems to bethe only way of fitness on most peoples radar screen.

Theyre not thinking:
If I could sprint a 100 meters in 8 seconds
If I could squat double my bodyweight
If I could swing a heavy kettlebell 100 times straight

These never enter into the mind of the average person, yet I would argue theyre all betterindicators of overall fitness then being able to run a marathon.

Now it may come across as I despise marathons. I personally dont have an interest inrunning them, simply because I find running boring for the most part. But I recognizethere are many people, my brother included, that get great joy out of running, or otherlong distance sports. Ive run a few 10k races in my life but thats more than enough forme and Ill stick to the alternatives covered in this book instead.

If you enjoy running, I dont mean to take that away from you. Just realize that it is notthe epitome of health its been claimed to be. In fact, by running so much you may beDECREASING your overall health and fitness. All those miles claim a price.

Lets take a look back in time to find out how jogging and marathons became what theyare today.

Dr. Kenneth Cooper was the man largely responsible for getting people running,swimming and biking. He released his book Aerobics in 1968. You have to understand that at that time doctors and the majority of people didnt believe that exercise was good for health. Thats obvious today but it wasnt always so and without pioneers like Cooperit could have taken even longer.
Im reminded of the movie Anchorman where Ron Burgundy played by Will Ferrell says:Veronica and I trying this new fad called uh, jogging. I believe it's jogging or yogging.it might be a soft j. I'm not sure but apparently you just run for an extended period oftime. It's supposed to be wild.

Some of Coopers findings include that it really doesnt take all that much time to becomefit in the way that boosts your health and longevity. You can go beyond this, but at thatpoint you may be causing more harm then good. One study in Germany found that thosepeople who ran more than 30 miles per week or over 5 hours per week suffered extensiveDNA damage.[1] This can be combated by taking anti-oxidants, like Vitamin E, but itclearly shows that there can be too much. (As a side note everyone should be getting lotsof anti-oxidants either from diet or in supplement form.)

So here we have the person who basically created the running movement, coming out laterand saying that if youre doing too much youre doing it for reasons other than health.

Everyone has heard the stories of people dropping dead during marathons or their dailyruns. Jim Fixx, who helped popularize running with his best selling book The CompleteBook of Running died at 52 during a run.

Yet is running really bad for you in that it will cause you to die? We have to rememberthat the name Marathon came from the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, amessenger from the Battle of Marathon, to Athens. And upon reaching his destination and spreading the news he collapsed dead. Lets delve into some of the research surrounding this subject.

When the scientists, led by Dr. Aaron Baggish, associate director of the CardiovascularPerformance Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, looked more closely at themarathoners health records, they found that those who had a heart attack or died of a heart attack were also more likely to have had underlying heart disease. Many had thickened heart walls, or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in which the heart musclebecomes enlarged and less flexible, making it harder to pump blood efficiently. And because marathon runners tend to be older, many also had atherosclerosis, or buildup ofplaques within their heart vessel walls, which can also impede blood flow.

Either of these conditions, says Baggish, can worsen when patients take up vigorousexercise, and put additional strain on the heart to pump blood quickly and efficiently.

Previous studies have found that marathons can lead to a increase in the enzymetroponin, which rises when the heart is in distress and cant get enough blood. In onestudy, troponin levels of runners immediately after their race were alarmingly high, butthe boost was temporary, and the enzyme went back to normal levels three months later.