Gym Tips

Faceless Friday – 15/12/17

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Happy Friday y’all! Here’s some of what I’ve been up to in the last week

A Triceps Exercise I’m trying out…
A Giant set of: Rockers / Skull Crushers / Reverse Press / Overhead Extension

3 Sets of 10/10/10/10 reps (No rest between exercises)

A Mini barbell is perfect for these 4 exercises. This set was an original FacelessFitness idea and for me it hits almost every part of the Triceps…throw in a few kickbacks to finish and you’re all set 😉

Tips

  • The grip for Rockers & Skull Crushers should be around shoulder width apart allowing your elbows to keep tucked in to your side
  • The movement for the reverse press should be a 45 degree angle, starting on your chest and pull outward and upward finishing above your hips
  • The grip for the overhead extension should see your hands

Skull Crushers Demo

A supplement I’m taking…
Grenade Thermo Detonator Continue reading →

Gym Tips #6 – Record, Review, Record…The importance of gym notes

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Notepads come in all shapes and sizes, from little detective flip pads to A4 diaries. Over the last few years I’ve used both and a range in between. For the record I’ve settled on the most practical A5 size with ring flip binder and a plastic cover. The hardback is better and more durable but I’ve always felt like a bit of a schoolboy writing my notes into a proper book, a bit too formal for a busy gym. The ring bind allows you to keep the size A5 by folding the pages around. The plastic cover is a lesson you will learn through spillage, my god I’ve spilled a lot of crap on my gym book, that coupled with the fact it’s usually in my gym bag makes the plastic essential.

All of this probably sounds a bit mad, but you should be proud of your gym book. If used correctly it will be the key to your success! Continue reading →

FacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #5 -Basic Gyms and Alternative Exercises

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When you are serious about training the first thing you need to do is find a good well equipped gym. Golds has certainly set the standard in terms of size and equipment, but Ireland and UK have really stepped things now up over the last number of years. Strength and Fitness, FlyeFit, Raw, Ben Dunne, and Dennehys in Cork (to name but a few) have really stepped up their game in terms of service to their customers. The range of equipment in these gyms really is impressive and it’s difficult to do a bad session with so much at your disposal. I can only recommend what I know and if you are serious about lifting check out each of these on a free trial and decide what’s best for you (I have a favourite and I love it!).

The above gyms have everything you could ever need, Continue reading →

FacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #4:”Rest Time” – and why you need to keep it bespoke

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A lot of programmes out there build strict rest times directly into the programme, while rest is an essential part of any good training regime, a structured rest pattern may actually be holding you back. For me personal trainers that provide a generic rest template (which lets be honest is always 1minute rest at the end of each set) are not providing a high level of service to their client. Generic Rest times are nearly always a good indicator that the remainder of your programme is also generic.  Continue reading →

FacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #3 – “DOMS”: What it is & how to use the term!

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If you have ever seriously found yourself on a gym programme or in a gym in any part of the world you have without a doubt both experienced and heard the term “DOMS”. Despite the frequency of use, particularly on social media, it remains surprising to me how many people misuse the acronym. A couple of years ago DOMS were just a painful by product of a seriously good gym session, now it appears to be the ‘in’ term for anyone that’s ever picked up a Dumbbell.

A genuine conversation that I saw online recently went something like this:
Gym goer 1: “O these DOMS are killing me from today’s session!”
Gym goer 2: “OMG Gymgoer 1 Continue reading →

FacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #2: Biceps…Why using Dumbbells alone is holding you back

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“Triceps T-shirt fillers, Biceps lady killers….”

I think everybody to a certain extent wants to have large defined Biceps, although the Triceps supply the majority of size it’s really the popping Biceps that are sought after by so many Gym goers.

A number of years ago a noticed an inconsistency between my left arm Biceps and my right arm, I couldn’t figure it out at the time but my left Biceps seemed to pop more off the bone on the outside of my shoulder. I thought initially because maybe I was right handed I wasn’t challenging that arm as much and although I was doing the same weight with both arms it was challenging my left arm more and producing the pop. I was training with my older brother at the time and he just seemed to have it, his biceps from the outside really popped and I recall him mentioning that “I just didn’t have the definition…all about definition” (The f**ker), but he was right, his were popping and mine were not! At least not as much. I shrugged it off and figured it would develop if I just kept training over the next few years. Continue reading →

FacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #1: Gym Partners & Spotters: What to look for

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Have you got a gym partner already or are you a lone wolf? Everybody trains differently, some are extrovert gym goers, chatting to everyone, asking about sets and generally getting involved in everything that’s going on in the gym. These guys love the gym. Others are more introvert, quiet, focused, keep to themselves, not really concerned about what others are doing. These guys also love the gym! Then you have the newbies…these are neither extrovert or introvert, yet!

So no matter what group you fall into, do you need a gym partner? My answer is ‘Yes with a But’, or ‘No with a Consider’…

“Yes with a But”
Most people who have a training partner usually Continue reading →