Homemade Body

Who wouldn't want a bowflex body? Lean, muscled, sexy, your dream physique. Besides the fact that I'd bet none of those models actually built their bodies using the bowflex, why pay hundreds of dollars to get results you can get with little investment, perhaps even free? (not counting the gallons of sweat and high amounts of intensity you have to put in, of course). The fact of the matter is that your body responds to resistance applied to it, regardless if it's an olympic barbell, resistance bands, a kettlebell, or even your cat/dog. So, that means if it isn't bolted down, you can try to lift it. Just having something to lift isn't enough, however; Our bodies require progressive resistance. Boiled down, this means that you have to lift more weight as your body adapts (this is a subset of the notion of exercise density). Lastly, safety is another concern. An injury will set you back, so we want to avoid it if possible. Keeping these ideas in mind, let's get your brains thinking about what you might have laying around you can use to improve your body. (*DISCLAIMER* As you read through the following, remember to always make sure that whatever you are using is sturdy and won't break. Common sense goes a long way, folks)

Groceries and Grocery Bags
You might happen to have one of these bags. Reusable and more durable than the old plastic bags, these can be used quite effectively. Load them up with almost anything, and lift away. Comparable to dumbbells or kettlebells, you can add as little or as much weight as you want (obviously, how much weight it can carry will depend on the quality of the bag). This setup should be safe as long as you do not put too much into the bag. This setup is most appropriate for working smaller muscle groups.

Luggage/Duffel Bags
Pretty much the same story as grocery bags, but should be able to handle heavier loads without breaking.

Sandbags
More than likely, you won't have the ingredients for a sangbag just laying around your house. However, they are really cheap to make. 50 pounds of sand is about 3-4 bucks, so you can have 200 pounds to work with for $12!. Instead of duplicating/stealing someone else's work, here's a link to Ross Enamait's excellent instructions to build your own sandbag. I do have one tweak, however. Instead of cutting off the top of the contractor bag, twist it until the top 1.5-2 feet are twisted into a "rope". Duct tape the end back to the base of the "rope" (make sure to use plenty of tape, don't be stingy lest you like sand everywhere). You should end up with a loop. Using this technique, you now have a handle you can use to carry each individual bag. Liftable? Progressive Resistance? Check and check. Safe? You betcha, drop one of the bags on your foot. Go ahead, do it. Didn't hurt, did it? Assuming you followed the instructions properly and left room in the bag, it shouldn't have because the sand molded around your foot. There is a small investment, but boy is it worth it.

Chairs
They're not just for sitting in! You can use them for dips, elevated push ups, leg raises, and I'm sure you can think of more when you start using these. Just make sure that they are sturdy before you use them.

Kitchen Counters
You can do just about everything you can do with chairs, especially if your counters form a corner. Check out this video of someone doing dips on their counter.

Walls
Huh, walls? That's right. Put your hands on it, and crank some pushups out. Since you'll be more upright, the push ups will be easier, making this a great option for those starting with weak upper bodies. Even if you are intermediate, you can try one arm wall push ups. You can also use walls to help you learn how to do a hand stand, do hand stand stand static holds, and eventually, hand stand push ups. What about wall sits? Again, use your imagination!

Pet/Child/Adult
Resistance is resitance, even if it's furry. Just don't try to use your cat who hates to be held, unless you like pain. Joking aside, most pets probably won't be a viable option. However, your kid can help you out. Have him/her sit on your back while you do push ups, press them over your head, carry them around, put them on your shoulders and do some squats. Sames goes for adults as well. Just make sure that you don't drop your "dumbbell".

Sledgehammer
See this site, or this one for ideas on how to train with a sledgehammer.

Odd objects (TVs, Couches, etc)
Suitable for lift and carrying, odd objects are great because they make you use your muscles in different ways than a well balanced barbell. Proper form is absolutely critical here. Lift with your legs, and keep your back straight. Don't forget to make sure the object won't break or fall apart when you lift it.

Stairs
Calf raises, lunges, bulgarian squats, depth jumps, step ups, push ups...stairs are versatile training tools. If you've got poor balance and/or are clumsy, you might want to skip running up and down them lest you crack your head open.

Rafters
Exposed rafters that are sturdy enough to hang from will allow you to perform exercises the pervious objects could not: pull-ups and chin-ups. If you're hardcore, you can just pinch the rafter between your fingers and go to town. Otherwise, find a bar you can mount on the rafter.

Trees
Hang from the branches and do some pull-ups. Climb the tree, jump down from it, be a kid again. Just remember you're not as light as you used to be, so make sure the branches will support you before you monkey around, got it?

Backpacks
The poor man's weighted vest. Load it up, and you've just added resistance to your bodyweight exercises. Do be cautious of putting too much weight on, however. Unlike a weigthed vest, the stress will mostly be placed on your front or back depending on how you wear the backpack. To even things out, try wearing one in front and one in back if you happen to have two.

Car/Truck/SUV
Put it in neutral, and push it around. If you've got some rope/chain, you can even pull it. Watch out for hills, even slight inclines. You don't want to get tired and get run over. Talk about embarassing. You can also try deadlifting or hack squatting the thing.

Books

Integrity - Ross Enamait

I haven't really felt like writing anything in a while, but this post from Ross Enamait's blog drove me to. In a billion dollar industry like fitness/weight loss it is really tough to find someone who will tell you the truth as they see it, and not try to push you to purchase their services or goods. I've been reading Ross' stuff for a few years now, and time and time again he has impressed me with his knowledge, integrity, and ability. His articles and forums are filled with all kinds of information, and there is absolutely no fee to access them. If you haven't taken the time to visit his site www.rosstraining.com, do yourself a favor and do so. In particular, check out The endless search. It's important to acknowledge, and support people like Ross.

Linked In: The Real Biggest Losers...The Viewers

I've never been a fan of the biggest loser and have never been able to bring myself to watch more than a snippet before I changed the channel in disgust. Yes, I'm sure it has inspired some people to make healthy changes in their lives, but for most people it feeds into the quick weight loss trap. Click here to read more at Coach Dos' blog.

Linked In: Manipulating the Truth

Think what you hear on news programs is always truthful? Think again. Better Life, Better Health through Chiropractic writes about a recent "untruth" thanks to a little editing. We'd hope that journalists would present the facts as is and let us come to our own decisions (outside of editorials). However, this just isn't the case. As demonstrated by the CSPI and the chiropractic story, we always need to take information from sources of "authority"with a grain of salt.

CSPI Update

The idiocy of the lawsuit ruffled my feathers enough that I ended up sending them the following e-mail:

To whom it may concern,

While I believe that consumers need watchdogs to keep various industries in line, in this case, I disagree with your singling out of Denny's restaurants. It would be more equitable and have a greater impact if all restaurants were to put the sodium content on their menus. Denny's is not the only business to offer foods with high sodium content.

Take, for example, Subway. Unlike Denny's, Subway is often perceived as a source of healthy food, especially after their successful "Jared" campaign. However, despite appearing to be a healthy restaurant, four of their "healthy" low-fat 6" subs contain over 1000 mg of sodium; the ham sub contains the most - 1200 mg. Taking into account that most people will tend to get a foot-long sub versus a 6" sub, especially after the implementation of the $5 footlong, that means these subs contain over 2000 mg of sodium. Even a footlong of the veggie delite, their lowest sodium sandwich, yields 830 mg. Subway also serves six toasted sandwiches containing over 1500 milligrams.. The "Feast" yields 2610 mg, and that is just the 6" version. Is a footlong "Feast" and chips with over 5220 mg of sodium that much better than the Denny's Meat Lover's Scramble (5,690 mg)? The moderate to high amount of sodium in the food Subway serves, compounded with the appearance of being healthier, should make Subway a more immediate concern than Denny's. At least most people don't go to Denny's expecting to eat a healthy meal. The point is not that you should take action against Subway instead, but to prove that even "healthy" restaurants serve an abundance of sodium. Therefore, singling out Denny's is not an effective means of combating public ignorance of sodium content.

Another reason why I disagree with your lawsuit is that it removes personal responsibility from the picture. Michael Jacobson is quoted in an article on webMD stating the following: "...although Denny's has posted sodium and other nutritional information online, that information should go on the menu. If you drop into a Denny's, you're not going to the web. It's a totally inadequate means of informing consumers". While it may be true that people do not tend to check out the web before eating out, there is absolutely no reason that people at risk such as Mr. DeBenedetto could not have asked the wait staff what low sodium meals were available. It seems he was fully cognizant of reducing sodium intake as he was quoted on the news release on your website that he "at home does not cook with salt or use the salt shaker". If he was taking responsibility for his health in his own home, why didn't he take responsibility when eating out? You can put all the warnings and disclaimers on foods you want, but they will do no good until people start taking responsibility for their own health. Unfortunately, your current course of action puts the responsibility and blame squarely on the shoulders of the restaurant.

If your organization is truly interested in improving public health, you will focus on getting legislation passed to require sodium content be put on all menus and campaigns that encourage people to be responsible for their own health, instead of diverting resources towards attacking a single company.

They actually responded in a decent timeframe (e-mail sent Friday, they responded Monday). Here's their e-mail:

Thanks very much for your email and your views. We agree with you 100% about the need for universal menu labeling and we have been advocating for that for many years. Please visit the CSPI website to learn more about our ongoing campaign:

It's a cop-out response, and doesn't respond to any of the points I made, but I suppose that's not surprising given that they're in a lawsuit. I also sent the e-mail to Denny's. No response from them so far...

Idiots on the Rampage: CSPI vs Dennys

Apparently, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is suing Denny's. Why? Because Denny's uses too much salt in its food. While I'm not convinced salt is the villain it's made out to be, let's put that to the side for the moment. Why pick on Denny's? If you're going to force a restaurant to put sodium content on its menu, every restaurant should have to. Oh, but Denny's must be the worst offender, right? Well, let's just take a look at the poster boy of healthy fast food eating - Subway's. Of their advertised so-called healthy 6 grams of fat or less subs, there are four that have over 1000 mgs of sodium, with the 6" ham weighing in at 1200. Let's face facts, most people don't just eat a 6" sub, most go for the footlong (Five Dollar Footlong, anyone?). Doubling those numbers puts those subs within the range of the oh-so-horrible Moons Over My Hammy (2580 mgs). How about the 6" feast sub? It alone has 2610 mgs of sodium. Again, double that for the inevitable footlong and you end up with a whopping 5220 mgs of sodium! That's a lot worse than Denny's worst sodium offender - the double cheeseburger which weighs in with 3880 mgs. Even McDonalds, that stalwart of excellent health, has at worst 2260 mgs of sodium in its Deluxe breakfast with a large size biscuit w/o syrup and margarine. So why, then, isn't the CSPI going after Subway? Maybe it's because of the lawsuit's plaintiff, Nick DeBenedetto. Straight from the article, here is a description of the guy:

"That sandwich is one of the items that lawsuit plaintiff Nick DeBenedetto, a 48-year-old New Jersey man with hypertension (high blood pressure), said was one of his favorite Denny's meals over the past 20 years.

In the news conference, DeBenedetto said he tried to live a healthy lifestyle and that he was "astonished and shocked" to learn how much sodium was in the Denny's items he typically ordered. "I wouldn't have selected these items if I'd known the extreme amount of sodium in this food," DeBenedetto said."

Nick was trying to live a healthy lifestyle and he ate at Denny's frequently? Now, the article doesn't say he ate there often, but honestly, you can't sue a restaurant if you only ate there once a year. My guess is Mr. DeBenneto ate there at least once a week, and ate out often, which guess what? It's probably the reason why he has high blood pressure. The defense for his ignorance is this:

"Jacobson says that although Denny's has posted sodium and other nutritional information online, that information should go on the menu. "If you drop into a Denny's, you're not going to the web. It's a totally inadequate means of informing consumers," Jacobson said."

If you are truly concerned about your health, you will seek the appropriate information out. It is not like Denny's hides its nutritional info on its website by making you jump through hoops. At the very least, he should have asked the wait staff for low salt options - which I'm sure they would have gladly listed for him. Are we now going to force restaurants to have you sign a document stating the nutritional information of the things you've ordered before you can get them? How about a little something called self-responsibility?

Denny's official response?

"Denny's believes the lawsuit filed by CSPI is frivolous and without merit, and the company will fight it aggressively in court. With hundreds of items on the menu, Denny's offers a wide variety of choices for consumers with different lifestyles, understanding that many have special dietary needs. In June 2009, the company launched Better for You items, allowing guests to replace favorites with lower-sodium and fat alternatives. Additionally, earlier this month, Denny's launched a Better for You kids menu. All nutrition information is available online at www.dennys.com."

I have to agree with Denny's. This should be thrown out just like the case when people were trying to blame fast food restaurants for their being obese. Or maybe we should all be fed pre-rationed meals as determined by the government...

Just sign on the dotted line!

Comment on Training on the somewhat cheap

Ktales of lifting underground left the following helpful comment:

"perhaps I'm tired or so, but I'd also look into gyms that are going out of business. A friend of mine was able to furbish an entire gym for 2000.00 - the only thing the equipment needed was a fresh coat of paint.

A little bit more expensive, but the deals are out there."

This is a great idea, and definitely one to look into if you're in the market for used fitness equipment.