"How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg? Four. Saying that a tail is a leg doesn't make it a leg."
― Abraham Lincoln
The specs
1-3 Sets of each exercise:
8-12 Squat Kicks
8-12 Pistol Negatives
8-12 Half Pistols
*The reps are TOTAL reps. Ex. do 4 reps with each leg for 8 total.
You can train hard all day long, but if you do not also train smart, you can end up wasting a lot of time and energy. Trust me, I know from experience... I think that the fitness industry, as well as popular culture, has conditioned us to equate a long, sweaty workout that leaves you completely destroyed as the key to a successful physical training program. Training sessions similar to what I described above are not inherently bad, it's just that it is not necessary to do them every day. Just because you aren't in a pool of sweat with your heart beating out of your chest doesn't mean you didn't train hard. With that being said, for this week's training, we will be doing 3 drills to improve single-leg strength, flexibility, and mobility. Specifically, we will be using 3 derivatives of the Pistol Squat.
A few notes: 1) Make sure you are warmed up before you do these exercises, 2) Move slowly through the exercises. You should work on perfect monkii-form and really marinate in the end range of the motion. If you notice that your heel is pulling up at the bottom of the movement, try stretching out your calves. Why do these drills? Pistols are extremely difficult, but also very achievable if you are willing to put in the time and effort. More often than not, I find that flexibility and mobility are the biggest limiting factors in being able to complete a Pistol. That is the beauty of being a monkii. You have a device that you can use to scale/assist-you through the exercise. If you are looking for a good goal to work on, try doing an unassisted Pistol. When you get it, send me a video, I'd love to see!
― Abraham Lincoln
The specs
1-3 Sets of each exercise:
8-12 Squat Kicks
8-12 Pistol Negatives
8-12 Half Pistols
*The reps are TOTAL reps. Ex. do 4 reps with each leg for 8 total.
You can train hard all day long, but if you do not also train smart, you can end up wasting a lot of time and energy. Trust me, I know from experience... I think that the fitness industry, as well as popular culture, has conditioned us to equate a long, sweaty workout that leaves you completely destroyed as the key to a successful physical training program. Training sessions similar to what I described above are not inherently bad, it's just that it is not necessary to do them every day. Just because you aren't in a pool of sweat with your heart beating out of your chest doesn't mean you didn't train hard. With that being said, for this week's training, we will be doing 3 drills to improve single-leg strength, flexibility, and mobility. Specifically, we will be using 3 derivatives of the Pistol Squat.
A few notes: 1) Make sure you are warmed up before you do these exercises, 2) Move slowly through the exercises. You should work on perfect monkii-form and really marinate in the end range of the motion. If you notice that your heel is pulling up at the bottom of the movement, try stretching out your calves. Why do these drills? Pistols are extremely difficult, but also very achievable if you are willing to put in the time and effort. More often than not, I find that flexibility and mobility are the biggest limiting factors in being able to complete a Pistol. That is the beauty of being a monkii. You have a device that you can use to scale/assist-you through the exercise. If you are looking for a good goal to work on, try doing an unassisted Pistol. When you get it, send me a video, I'd love to see!
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