Last article I addressed training the quads (thigh muscles) Revolving around 3 of my favorite exercises to restore balance between weak muscles, and strengthen and build the quads. In this article I’m going to introduce another 3 of my favorite exercises addressing probably one of the most under trained muscles in the body, the gluteus.

Gluteus training basics
Most female gym goers desire a toned and built bum like celebrity names such as Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, but to most male characters, the thought of directly training your bum (glute) muscles is not necessarily a manly thing to engage in.

But however I must say, if you’re interested in transforming your lower body from chicken legs, to Arnold status, as well as improving fundamental big lifts such as the squat, deadlfift, and lunge, you will have to switch your attention to specialized glute training methods.

A lot of people think exercises such as the squat and deadlift maximally recruit the glute muscles, however according to Bret Contreras, the glute guru, who literally specializes in everything to do with training the glutes, actually measured muscle activation during different exercises. And in conclusion, Squats and deadlifts did not maximally recruit the glutes.

So what are the best exercises for training the Glutes?

Based on my knowledge, the best movements are as follows,

To recruit the Glute maximus which is the larger glute muscle, you want to focus on maximal hip extension.
To recruit the Glute medius which is the smaller glute muscle you want to focus on hip external rotation.

For those of you who don’t understand this language of human movement that’s ok, the exercises I’m going to show you are great examples of the above two movements.

The exercises

Below are 3 of my favorite exercises for training the gluteus muscles. But like I state in my other articles, if you are not confident or are unfamiliar with these movements, get yourself a qualified personal trainer and strength coach to take you through these exercises.

1.) Band resisted split squats
This is a very unique exercise that was taught to me by Australia’s elite physiotherapists during an intensive 4 day musculoskeletal rehab course. Its main target is to activate the smaller Gluteus muscle (Glute Medius) through manipulation with a resisted band.

The only problem with this exercise is that you need to be equipped with a power band. You can purchase a set of different power bands at iron edge retailers. Once you have a power band your good to go!

Begin by looping the power band around the working leg of the split squat, so if you’re going to be split squatting with the left leg forward then loop it around the left leg. The band should sit two to three fingers just above the knee at the bottom end of your femur (thigh bone). To make sure there is significant resistance you have to have the band fully stretched, not loose and floppy.

Once you’re in position, descend and perform a split squat. But this time, unlike how I explained in my last article, I do not want you to focus on driving your knee past the toe. Instead slowly focus on dropping your pelvis to the ground with your knee minimally passing the toe.

The concept of the band is that where the resistance is placed, it forces your hip to externally rotate against the resistance of the band. This gets the glute medias working extra hard! You should feel an immediate firing of your glute muscles when you engage in this exercise.

2.) Barbell hip thrusters
This exercise is my absolute favorite for maximally recruiting the glute muscles. What is so paramount about this exercise is that it works on getting the hip into full extension. There are many variations to this exercise but the hip thrusters from the bench are probably the most difficult, and the hip thrusters from the floor being the most basic. I recommend to anyone who is new to this exercise to begin with the floor variation, and then move up to the bench variation.

Most people find this exercise difficult because of the discomfort the barbell causes on the hips. May I just say if you’re going to do this exercise with a weighted barbell, make sure you have a soft padding to role around the barbell. You can use a towel, yoga mat, or even the soft squat straps you use for back squatting.

To initiate the movement begin by having someone place the barbell just below your iliac crest, some people can get under the bar but if it’s your first time just get someone to place barbell on your hip. The first action is driving your feet into the ground and to push your hip into extension. To maximally recruit the gluteus, get your hip as high as you can of the ground. Trust me you will feel it! At the top end, I recommend pausing for one second for an even more grueling activation of the gluteus. To descend, drop your hips slowly back down to the ground and repeat the movement. This movement is bar far the best gluteus exercise to do!

3.) Single leg hip thrusters (elevated foot)
This exercise is a variation to the barbell hip thrusters. The working demand of the gluteus maximus is highly increased as you’re now isolating one limb to do all the work. The elevation of the working foot will increase the range of motion to get your hip nice and deep, followed by a big hip extension. I like to use this exercise for a lot of people who claim they never feel their gluteus working during exercise. Once they participate in this exercise, it’s a rude awakening for the bum muscles! To elevate your foot, you can place it on a lowered bench, box step, or set up your own platform.

Once again initiate the exercise by having your arms out to the side, driving the working foot into the platform and extend your hip up as high as you can. Then descend back to the starting position with your hips lowered and repeat the movement.

Great and simple interview with fellow colleague and respected Chinese medicine expert Samantha Corke. Check it out.

Not only are we in an obesity & fat storage epidemic, we are in a bad mood epidemic! And to say that our mood is purely influenced by our emotional habits and encounters throughout the day is absolutely rubbish. The foods we eat, the liquids we drink, and how well we manage our sleep play much more of a primary role on how well our mood scale will tip on the bad mood side, or the good mood side.For example, do you ever wonder why after you eat a high carbohydrate meal such as pizza, bread, pastas, and cereals, you feel a sense fullness and well being, but soon after you feel a crashing, sleepy, sluggish feeling?

Or do you ever wonder why most if not all people are addicted to chips, cheese, and fried food? Or this might sound familiar to you! You can’t get to sleep unless you have chocolate, cereal, ice cream, or other comfort foods.

You see our eating habits not only dictate body composition, and overall health, but influence the way we feel emotionally.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to cure false moods with natural food therapy and the anatomy behind how dietary intake impacts our mind-mood bio-chemicals, then I recommend picking up a copy of Julia Ross fantastic book the mood cure.

In this book, Julia Ross goes deep into the physiology of why we are all victims of dietary induced bad moods, and how to carefully repair your false moods with proper nutrition and supplementation.

It is an absolute great read for anyone who is serious about improving the quality of there life, there mental health, and even improving performance. Because remember! If we’re moody all the time and feel down, how are we going to tackle our goals head on with a positive attitude? Pick up a copy of Julia Ross the mood cure today.  

 Still to this day I see in most gyms the remains of what used to be a very ignorant gym junkie training method, which are training habits purely fixated on the upper body, with no consideration of the lower body. Like my friend said on facebook, there are too many Y shaped body’s being produced, and not enough X shaped body’s being produced.

Whether if its arrogance, ignorance, or just the fact that lifters & body comp enthusiasts are not well educated on training the lower anatomy, its definitely something that I would like to address, or at least inform my community on the basics of training the lower body to be sexy, strong, and lean.

Training the lower body has a gigantic hormonal impact on the body

Whether your goal is to bulk up, get lean, or just stay in shape, training the lower body has its advantages. Specifically to detail, training the lower body impacts the endocrine system (hormonal system) like no other. Did you know that the biggest and strongest muscles in your body are actually the quads (thighs) and gluteus (bum)? Yes they are! This means if you’re after raw full body strength, you need to spend a lot of time training the quads and glutes.

But what if I want to be lean and ripped? Well then you need to spend even more time training the lower body. Let me explain. Your primary fat burning & anabolic hormones are testosterone or androgen hormones, growth hormone, and IGF-1. These hormones are responsible for the repair of damaged muscle tissue, and for regulating and decreasing body fat. When you train the largest and strongest muscles in your body, which are the quads and gluteus, you generate a huge hormonal response, allowing for much more potent fat loss and muscle building.

Training the quads

Alright! I only ask that you read on if you’re ready to start getting the blood pumping downstairs.

I will begin by addressing quad (thigh) training. The quad muscle is comprised of four heads, the rectus femoris, vastus intermedius, vastus lateralis, and the vastus medialis. While the first three muscles I mentioned tend to be quite strong, there is clear evidence that there is a common muscle imbalance between the vastes lateralis (which is the big thigh muscle sticking out on the side of your legs, tends to be the one you notice first when the muscle is flexed) and the vastus medialis (which is the smaller tear drop shaped muscle located in the bottom inside of your thigh right above the knee) Infact if you have not been training the quad muscles properly, you will most likely not even have a developed vastus medialis, but a noticeable lateral quad development.

The structural imbalance between the two heads of the thigh muscle is a common muscular glitch that can bring about knee pain. So if you are a person who suffers from knee discomfort when training the lower body, these exercises I’m about to show you will do much good.

The exercises I’m about to present are my 3 favorites for training and developing sleek, sexy, and strong quads. But before anything, I recommend if you are not confident or skilled in training your lower body, or epically lacking in coordination, get a certified strength coach or certified personal trainer to help you.

Exercise 1-the split squat

 The split squat is by far one of the best lower body exercises ever. Strength & conditioning Guru Charles Poliquin is a big preacher of this exercise for correcting structural imbalances in the lower body, as well as transforming your thighs. This exercise is a must for any lower body program.

Begin by placing one foot out in front of you, and the other behind you (split stance). The back leg and foot are only for balance and should not do any work. Most of your weight wants to be on the front foot. With the weight on your front foot, slowly lower your body straight down towards the floor on a 4 second count (meaning count 4 seconds before you reach the bottom range of the exercise) as you descend towards the floor, allow your knee to slowly track past your toe, but as soon as your front heel lifts of the ground, your knee is to far forward, so find a medium where your knee can travel past the toe without your front heel lifting of the ground. At the bottom position, drive your front foot into the ground and come back up into the original position. A good tip is to not lock out the front knee, keep a slight bend in it, as this will keep precious muscle tension on the exercise.

Exercise 2-Back heels elevated squat

The back heels elevated squat is a great variation for people who cannot perform proper barbell back squats. While barbell back squats are the king of all lower body exercises, some if not most of us do not have an orthopedic or flexibility profile that can qualify us to do to the lift. So what to do? Regress to a back heels elevated squat.

By elevating the back heels, you manipulate the ankle joint to allow for a smooth descend into a deep squat. I recommend using a weight plate to elevate your back heels of the ground; usually it will be about 1 inch. In other cases you can elevate the back heels higher for a much more aggressive recruitment of the thigh muscles.

With your back heels elevated, begin the descend of the squat by allowing your knees to slowly drive forward, as your knees drive forward, your pelvis should begin to drop down into the bottom position, again, perform this exercise with a 4 second lowering. Once your bum passes your knees and pretty much touching your calves, drive your feet into the plates as well as the ground to bring yourself back up into the top position. Once again as well, do not bring your knees to full lock out.

If you’re a beginner, I recommend starting with dumbbells or kettlebells, then once strength is developed, load up for a barbell behind the back.

Exercise 3-eccentric back squats

Eccentric based exercises are a lot more advanced then basic lifting. During the lift, your primary focus is to extend the time under tension during the lowering of the squat. For example instead of performing10-12 reps with a 4 second lowering, you will do 2-4 reps with a lowering of 12 seconds. This is a pretty full on style of training that is not for beginners, but I still included it in this article as its one of my favorite methods for maximizing growth and strength of the quads. Don’t worry, you can do it! Just make sure that if you’re still a beginner, focus your bulk of training on split squats, lunges, leg presses, and back heel elevated squats. Then eventually move up to more difficult exercises such as this one.

In the squat rack, load up the bar behind the neck as if you were going to perform a normal back squat, in this exercise, elevating the back heels is optional. Begin your usual lowering but this time, slow down the descend and focus on counting to 12 seconds before your bum reaches the lowest point of the lift (brutal!) once at the bottom position, drive your feet through the ground and come back up to the starting position. I would suspect that 1 to 2 reps on this tempo would be realistic for someone first trying out this exercise. If 12 seconds is too hard, try 8-10 seconds.

For repetition protocols, I recommend beginning with 10-12 reps for 3-4 sets of the split squat and back heels elevated squat. And 2-3 sets of the eccentric back squat with 2-3 reps.

Stay tuned for part 2, which will be on training the gluteus, and hamstrings!

Today we have a very special guest post by a fellow colleague & friend of mine Samantha Corke. Sam is a specialist in Chinese medicine and I have asked her to write a guest post defining and underlining the key fundamentals of eastern medicine in an easy to understand article. Chinese and eastern healing techniques are a fairly new yet outstanding subject that I am slowly building a knowledge base around. But I can guarantee that these practices, from meditation and Qi gong, to Chinese acupuncture and cupping, all can play a vital role in not only enhancing overall well being, but can increase exercise performance, speed up fat loss, and decrease stress dramatically.

But without further ado, I will let Sam (the expert) take you on an easy to understand read up on the basic fundamentals and benefits of the eastern healing practices.

Understanding Chinese Medicine

8 year ago, I suffered from chronic migraines. I found myself taking heavy medication and going to hospital on a monthly basis in search of pain relief.

It took over a vast portion of my life, taking many sick days from work. My training was restricted, as I felt chronically fatigued. I was under lots of stress and very unhappy. My life felt completely out of balance. I was tired in pain, run down and sick of being fed medication after medication.

A friend recommended acupuncture. After constant nagging I finally went along not knowing anything about it. It was a strange and new concept, which I was very much skeptical about but felt I had nothing to loose. So I agreed to treatment. The practitioner said I had ‘Liver Qi Stagnation’ and ‘Heart Blood Deficiency’ which were causing all my problems. Hearing his diagnosis my initial thoughts were ‘Liver Qi?’

I had 3 treatments in a span of 2 weeks. I noticed my energy increased, I was able to sleep better. I managed stress under a high demanding job, I was able to start exercising more and my migraines – have not had one since. Now I am a student of Chinese Medicine, I have worked as a coordinator of a Chinese medicine clinic (Hand on Health, Collingwood) and I am now a coach for Australian Strength Performance (www.trainasp.com).

We all know that the good health is the foundation to happiness and like many of you I have spent a lot of time trying to find ways to keep myself healthy in mind, body and spirit. Like Alice down the rabbit hole I learned to look at everything from a different slant of light. Lets take a deeper look into what has kept this tradition going for over 7000 years.

The Nature of Qi

Traditional Chinese Medicine is an energetic holistic form of medicine based on Chinese philosophy, which perceives the natural world through a deep-seated understanding that everything in nature has a dynamic relationship with one another. It is said that ‘no single part can be understood except in its relationship to the whole’.

The fundamental principle of Chinese medicine recognizes the existence and nature of Qi. What is Qi? Simple yet complex in its true meaning, Qi in its most basic understanding can be described as the ‘universal life force’.  Energy understood to encompass Yin and Yang. Dynamic in its relationship, the polar opposite Yin/Yang illustrates the constant flow, flux, interrelationship and interdependence of all entities within nature.

In terms easier to understand, Yin and Yang superficially represents complementary opposites to describe a relative relationship to the ‘whole’.

Yin ‘shady side of the mountain’: dark, cold, water, substantial, female energy.

Yang ‘sunny side of the mountain’: bright, hot, dry, energetic, male energy.

Yin cannot be expressed without its relation to Yang visa versa. Also, one cannot be without the other, one transforms and complements the other.

Through observation of Qi’s phenomena and its physical manifestations in the natural world, the Chinese philosophy of Wu Xing (five states of change) became conscious. Qi can neither be created nor destroyed; it can only transform from one to another. This idea describes the characteristics, movement, properties and quality of Qi accordingly to the world that is around.

Its very nature nourishes, warms, protects and promotes growth.

In terms of health and wellbeing, this movement of Qi generated in specific organs flow within us along energetic pathways known as meridians channels. The dynamic cycle of Qi transforming, nourishing and controlling within these channels creates an understanding about the well being of a person. Disharmony or otherwise disease occurs when the energetic flow of Qi is hindered thereby disturbing the balance of Yin/Yang in the body and its organ function. ‘All symptoms and signs are ultimately due to an imbalance between Yin and Yang.’

Diagnosis

How can a Chinese doctor diagnose disharmony/disease at an energetic level? Years of training study for one, and two; understanding that Qi manifests physically or in other words what happens within is expressed externally in one form or another. ‘Outer reflects the inner’.

The Four Methods; looking, asking, listening and touch, are used as tools to gain the necessary information to decipher the patterns of disharmony. A practitioner may look at the presentations of the tongue, feel the quality of the pulse, palpate specific areas in the body or ask seemingly irrelevant questions such as quality of bowl movement, sweating, sleep or urinary frequency when you had initially gone in due to a sore lower back.

Chinese Medicine works by rectifying the flow of energy through methods unique to its practice. It uses the aid of needle insertion (Acupuncture) in energetic point on the body to directly influence the flow of Qi. Herbs and lifestyle practices, such as diet, special exercise routines and meditation maybe implemented to restore, maintain and improve quality of health.

In conclusion to my article understanding Chinese Medicine it’s easy to see there’s a whole world of knowledge waiting to be discovered. Whether you need pain relief, more energy to get you active in the gym or for general wellbeing.

 Who is Samantha Corke?

My name is Samantha Corke I am a mother of a four year old and understand the importance of balance in a busy lifestyle. I work at Fitness First Melbourne Central and I am currently a strength and conditioning coach for Australian Strength Performance and a student of Chinese Medicine doing my Bachelor degree at Southern School of Natural Therapies. I have been the owner and founder of Good Vibrations Reiki and Massage since 2005 and have been the Co-ordinator of Hands on Health Acupuncture Clinic since 2009.  I have a strong passion in helping others in training and development and health and wellbeing.

In part 1 of my article series on grains, I wrote about gluten and its connection with many health hazards, such as tissue inflammation, running down the immune system and unwanted fat storage (especially in the belly area due to high cortisol release).

In this article I’m going to explain the role of phytates and how many foods, including grains, contain this supposedly nutrient robbing substance.

What are phytates?

Phytic acid, also known as phytates in its salt form, are antioxidant compounds found in chief dietary foods such as whole grains, legumes, soy and some nuts and seeds. Wait! Did you say antioxidant? I thought antioxidants are good for you? You’re probably asking yourself this right now. Well yes, antioxidants are good for you, but not phytates! Imagine an evil twin of an antioxidant, that’s what you can call a phytate.

Why are phytates a hazard to your health

Phytic acid or phytates have a well devised plan of nutrient thievery as soon as they enter your gut. They interfere with the absorption of key minerals such as zinc, manganese and calcium. Phytates when entered into the gut, have a binding mechanism to these minerals and rob your body from optimal absorption from these key micronutrients. Phytates can also damage your gastrointestinal tract and immune system.

Phytates & grains-stay the hell away from them!

The foods most abundant in these anti-nutrients are wholegrains, legumes, soy foods and nuts & seeds. For now I’m going to focus on just purely wholegrains for the sake of this article. I am anti legume and soy as they have many other health problems that these foods contribute to, however nuts and seeds are less risky as they are higher in nutrients and can be soaked or roasted to destroy these phytates.

Phytates are actually not of much concern for someone who follows a healthy diet and lifestyle. I am strictly referring to someone who follows clean eating habits leaning towards the Paleo style, which is a diet rich in animal protein, fruits and vegetables and nuts and seeds. The average Westerner does not even come close to this! Every day grain consumption is through the roof! Couple this eating habit with other high processed food intake, high trans fat intake, low organic food intake and your body has no mineral source to out absorb what the phytates are robbing from your body.

So, if you follow the paleo habits and eat clean, phytate consumption here and there is ok. But if your kitchen is filled with processed canned food, boxed cereals, hydrogenated vegetable oils and bread; I suggest you rethink how you conduct your shopping in the supermarket.

Mineral deficiency symptoms and grain connection

Interested to know what mineral thievery can possibly bring out in your body?

Well lets have a look shall we:

Zinc thievery: Zinc is one of the most important, and I repeat, IMPORTANT minerals in your body. Not enough zinc in your body can contribute to low testosterone, weak immune system, poor brain function, impaired nutrient absorption, digestive issues and overall every day performance.

Calcium thievery:  Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body. Poor calcium intake can contribute to cardiovascular problems, poor nerve transmission, muscle cramps and poor sleep.

Manganese thievery:  Manganese is a very important mineral for development of connective tissue. Deficiency of this mineral will contribute to poor development of bone structures, improper enzyme production and poor glucose management.

So as you can see phytates are not series threats if you are eating high quality foods to replace the minerals that are being robbed. But to be harsh and honest, most people do not eat enough high quality foods and have good enough eating habits these days to counteract the stress from eating to much grains and phytates.

So my suggestion

If you’re too lazy to change your food choices and start eating healthy, you can soak or cook your grains to destroy as much phytates as possible, but in all honesty, just make a simple effort to increase your consumption of free range, grass fed and organic meats, eat more fruits and vegetables, eat small consumption of nuts and seeds, take high quality fish oil regularly and you will be on your way to healing your body from grain induced disease and epic fat storage!

Stay tuned for part 3 on article series on grains