My Handstand Journey: Lessons Learned

 

I’ll never forget the first handstand I ever did.

I was in a CrossFit class, and the skill of the day was to practice handstand holds. I always like to pretend I’m tougher than I really feel, so when the coach told us to kick up into a handstand against the wall, I wasn’t going to back down, despite feeling like I’d swallowed a hundred butterflies.

I took a deep breath, threw my hands down on the ground about a foot from the wall, and kicked my legs up as hard as I could. My feet slammed loudly against the wall, followed soon by my butt, and I was wobbly and unsteady thanks to fairly weak shoulders and a non-engaged core.

But despite all that, I felt like a superhero.

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7 AMRAP Workouts You Can Do to Maximize Your Workout

 

AMRAP workouts are one of my favorite types of workouts ever to maximize time efficiency and overall effectiveness.

Not only do AMRAP workouts force you to work super hard during the entire workout, they also have a time limit on them – which, for me, makes them a little mentally easier to get through than time challenge workouts since you know the pain will only last so long.

Each and every one of these AMRAP workouts takes just 12 minutes and uses little or no equipment, so you really have no excuse not to give them a try. And don’t forget that you can always substitute bodyweight exercises if you don’t have access to any of the equipment called for in the workouts.

Here are 7 AMRAP workouts you can do to get your heart pumping in just 12 minutes flat:

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5 Foam Roller Exercises You Should Be Doing Regularly

It’s been a while since we’ve addressed anything recovery-related here on 12 Minute Athlete—but recovery is an incredibly important piece of meeting any athletic or weight loss-based goals.

And really, taking at least one rest day a week, getting adequate sleep, stretching regularly, and fueling your body right is just as important as working out on a consistent basis.

One of the things I consider to be an integral part of the recovery process is foam rolling. Foam rollers cost all of $10-$20 on Amazon or any sporting goods store, but they can make a huge difference in the level of soreness you experience, prevent injuries, and can even help with your workout performance.

And you don’t even have to spend a lot of time using it to get results. Even foam rolling just a few times a week for 5-10 minutes at a time will really help your body perform at its peak level, especially if you’re prone to minor injuries like shin splints or overly sore muscles.

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Super Athletes: How To Set Up Workout Reminders In The App

[fullwidth background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”0″ padding_right=”0″ hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][one_full last=”yes” spacing=”yes” center_content=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” border_position=”all” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”” animation_speed=”0.1″ class=”” id=””][fusion_text]Super Athlete

Those of you who decided to become beta Super Athlete members have said how happy you are to finally have the the weekly workouts from the blog available in the app.

This is something we’ve been working on getting going for quite a while now, so I’m really glad to hear you like that initial feature!

But today I wanted to show you another Super Athlete feature you might not have found yet: the ability to set up a weekly workout schedule and have the app remind you when you want to work out.

Not surprisingly, having a pre-planned workout schedule and frequently reminding yourself of that schedule significantly helps remove any excuses not to work out.

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Become a Beta Super Athlete Member!

Super Athlete

I’m super excited to announce the beginning of a whole new chapter for 12 Minute Athlete: the Super Athlete app membership!

Ever since it first came out a year and a half ago, we’ve been constantly working to add new features to make the 12 Minute Athlete app the coolest, most user-friendly workout app out there.

But the Super Athlete membership takes it to a whole new level.

Here’s what you’ll get when you become a Super Athlete member for the early beta member price of just $3.99 a month:

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Should You Count Calories?

 

One of the biggest nutrition questions I get on a regular basis is whether or not it’s really necessary to count calories.

I always hesitate to answer this one, because really, it depends so much on you—what your short and long-term goals are, whether you know how to eat intuitively or not, whether you’ll actually be diligent and honest when you do it (and not accidentally “forget” that half box of chocolate chip cookies you ate last night), and whether you have obsessive tendencies.

Depending on what your answers are to those questions above, I may or may not tell you it’s a good idea to count calories on a regular basis.

So do I count calories?

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Are Carbs Really That Bad?

 

I have a confession to make.

Despite knowing better, over the past couple of years I fell deeper and deeper into the “carbs are bad” fitness trend.

Now, I knew when I first started hearing about the low carb fad that it was just that: a fad. I knew carbs were crucial to a healthy, well rounded, diet, yet I let myself demonize them anyway. And most of all, I knew carbs were absolutely crucial for athletic performance, yet I kept ignoring the evidence, despite knowing better.

And I wasn’t alone—other performance-focused fitness lovers and athletes began to fall into the low carb trap over the past few years as well. Writers like Adam Bornstein and Jason Ferruggia have recently talked about their own experiences with the low carb diet trend, and the success of Eat to Perform, a site pretty much dedicated to helping athletes add carbs back into their diet in order to improve their athletic performance as well as their overall health, is pretty telling as to just how many athletes are dealing with this issue.

Yet this isn’t to say that low carb diets have absolutely no place for anyone—in fact, if you’re overweight and sedentary, a diet low in carbohydrates can definitely help you lose weight. And if you only do light or moderate exercise, a low carb diet may be right for you as well.

But if you train like an athlete, you have to eat like one. And that means embracing carbs.

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8 Exercises You Can Do Without a Gym (Using Nothing But a Plyo Box)

 

One of the things I really try and stress on 12 Minute Athlete is that you really don’t need much equipment at all in order to get in good shape.

We do a lot of bodyweight-only based workouts here on the site and in the app, and when I do include equipment, I try and make it fairly simple and easily accessible – no fancy machines or overcomplicated pieces of equipment here.

One of my favorite pieces of equipment to use is as simple as it gets: a basic, wooden box.

A wooden box (or it’s rubber platform equivalent) is an all around awesome piece of equipment because it’s virtually indestructible, will last a lifetime, and there’s really an endless amount of ways to use it to improve strength and conditioning.

No access to a box? Don’t worry, just get creative—a high bench of some sort or even some stairs usually works great as a substitute. Just make sure whatever you’re using is really sturdy (so, probably avoid wobbly chairs) especially if you’re jumping on it so you don’t get hurt.

Here are 8 of my favorite exercises you can do using nothing but a sturdy plyo box:

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The 2 Minute Benchmark Workout Challenge (+ Get Your Workout Featured!)

I first got the idea for this workout from Steve, a reader and fitness enthusiast from Colorado.

Steve mentioned that he’d been doing a Navy SEAL-style drill workout to see how many reps of different exercises he could perform in two minute intervals, and as soon as he told me about his workout, I immediately thought: that sounds like fun!

So the next day, I created my own mini workout challenge sequence with the idea of sharing it with you guys.

In case you hadn’t guessed, two minutes straight of all out effort isn’t easy at all—it’s pretty brutal. But setting benchmarks like this one and like the 100 burpee challenge is a great way to measure your progress, so I’d encourage you to try it out and see how many reps you can get in.

Just as with the 100 burpee challenge, you’re best off trying to do this challenge every month or so to compare your numbers and see how you’re improving in different areas of your fitness. Give it a shot:

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How to Set Goals You’ll Actually Keep This Year

I know, I know, you’ve probably heard how to set goals and New Year’s resolutions with hundreds of times over the years.

But if you’re anything like me, it never hurts to have a reminder every once in a while. And this time of year is the perfect time to set new goals since it really does feel like a fresh start. The holidays are over, the days are (slowly) getting longer, and it’s time to kick some serious ass at life!

Here are 5 simple yet effective ways to set goals you’ll actually keep this year, whether they’re fitness, career, or life-oriented:

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