Jumping rope is an excellent exercise to improve your speed, agility, and burn a ton of calories, but sometimes it can get really, really BORING! I try to incorporate several different variations when I jump rope to make my cardio workouts much more fun and engaging.

Here’s a video demonstration of me doing some basic jump rope tricks, with more detailed descriptions below. If you need a primer on jumping rope and want to see a video of a guy doing CRAZY jump rope tricks (you have to see it to believe it), check out my article: Learn How to Jump Rope Like a Pro.

Continue Reading 7 Jump Rope Tricks To Keep It Fresh!

The jump rope can be a great cardio exercise if you know how to jump rope properly. Not only does jumping rope help you burn a ton of calories and improve your speed and quickness, it’s also cheap and you can do it just about anywhere.

Below I have 7 tips to ensure you learn how to jump rope like a pro, and I also have a CRAZY Youtube video of the “Best Jump Roper in the World” doing jump rope tricks. But first, here’s a quick video demonstration by yours truly:

Learn How to Jump Rope: Video Demonstration

Continue Reading Learn How to Jump Rope Like a Pro | 7 Tips

In my Strengthen Your Abs: 5 Great Abs Exercises video, some of you wanted me to discuss V-ups in more depth. So I have below 3 variations you can use depending on your fitness level. V-ups are a great exercise because they hit the entire rectus abdominus (six pack muscle) that extends from your pelvic region to your sternum.

Overall, this is a more advanced exercise that you should NOT attempt if you have any lower back issues, or experience any low back pain as you complete the exercise. I have video along with 5 tips to ensure you use excellent form every repetition.

Continue Reading V-ups Lower Abs Exercise: 3 Variations

Squats are the KING of all exercises because they are a “functional” exercise that affect your ability to live a full, healthy life. Anything from getting out of a chair, to squatting down to pick something off the floor requires squat strength. Especially as we get older, proper squat technique is absolutely critical to maintain health and longevity.

The squat requires core stabilization, leg, and hip strength. If you are using a barbell on your back, or holding dumbbells, then the squat involves every muscle group in your body. This video gives you 7 tips to squat with perfect form every time:

Continue Reading How to Use Proper Squat Technique | 7 Tips

How do you structure the order of exercises for your workouts? I want to offer you 3 compelling reasons why you should complete the most challenging, intense exercises in the beginning of your workout, then move on to less strenuous exercises.

When I say “challenging” exercises, I mean you are focusing on the most challenging compound exercises that require multiple joints and a lot of effort, such as Squats, Lunges, Bench Press, or Pullups for example. These exercises give you the most bang for your buck, as I described in Part 3 of my Efficient Strength Training 101 article series: How to Choose Effective Exercises.

So here are 3 reasons to complete the most challenging exercises in the beginning of your workout:

1) You have the most energy

At the beginning of the workout after a light warm up, your muscles are likely filled with sufficient glycogen (energy for your body), your muscles are fresh, and your cardiovascular capacity is the highest. You are ready to hit the weights hard and you might as well use this energy on the most important exercises that you get the best results. Starting out with shoulder raises or a biceps curl is not a great use of your energy.

Continue Reading 3 Reasons to Complete Challenging Exercises First

There are so many abs exercises to choose from, that it can seem impossible to figure out the right exercises to strengthen your abs. In my opinion, the best way to strengthen your abs is to choose harder and harder exercises to complete, not just complete more and more sets and reps.

I’ve used this progression of abs exercises too many times to count with many people very successfully. It works like a charm and before you know it, you’ll be doing some really advanced abs exercises and have a very strong midsection. In addition to the video instruction, find below more detailed explanations of each exercise with photos for you:

Continue Reading Strengthen Your Abs: 5 Great Abs Exercises

I created a list of 15 key strength training terms below to help you become a smart exerciser. I have tons of strength training workouts I plan on adding to BuiltLean.com that use many of these terms, so this page can serve as a reference for you.

Repetition
A repetition, or “rep” is a complete motion of a particular exercise. For example, a rep of a pushup starts with your arms straight holding yourself off the floor, lowering your body down, then pushing back up. Repeating 10 pushups means you completed 10 reps.

Set
A set is the specific number of reps you perform before you rest. Two sets of bench press performing 12 reps, means you completed 12 reps of bench press, two separate times.

Weight (aka Resistance)
The weight is the amount of resistance that you are lifting, such as a 30lbs dumbbell. Lower reps generally require that you lift heavier weight and higher reps implies you lift lighter weight.

Continue Reading 15 Strength Training Terms You Should Know

A lot of people have been asking me about my fitness philosophy to help get a leaner, healthier body. So I created a video to answer that question. I also wanted to create some context for all the exercise and nutrition videos that I will be adding in the future.

If you blend these 3 elements I discuss into your life, I really do believe you can reach your potential!

The one thing I would like to add to this video is that being lean is really a lifestyle. Not every lean person has the same exact lifestyle, but the vast majority of people who are lean in my opinion infuse these 3 elements into their lives.

I hope you enjoyed this video and I encourage you to share it with friends! Also, am I missing anything? What would you add?

When most people think of cardio, they think of long, boring jogs, or endless hours on the elliptical. I’ve got good news for you: there’s a method of cardio that takes much less time and is far superior to jogging to help you burn fat. It’s called High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and this article will give you the basics so you can take your body to a new fitness level.

The picture to the right shows an extreme example of the different training outcomes of a marathoner (“steady state” cardio) and sprinter (high intensity interval training cardio). While these people obviously have different body types and genetics, the photo is still revealing.

What is High Intensity Interval Training?

Continue Reading High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): Best Cardio to Burn Fat

Do you ever dream about your perfect fitness program? Ok, maybe it’s just me, but I’ve always wondered how I could adjust all the variables in a fitness program just right so that I could reach my potential as quickly, safely, and efficiently as possible.

I will go over all the variables to consider for each of the three major components of your fitness program that affect your body composition (1) Strength Training, (2) Cardio and (3) Nutrition.

Continue Reading The Perfect Fitness Program