Strengthen your core and abs with the barbell roll out

The barbell roll out is one of the best core exercises you can do.

This exercise focuses on working the core through anti extension. 

How does it work?
Your core muscles are being challenged to resist too much extension and it is really effective at building core strength and stability. It also gives your abs a good workout as they are being tested eccentrically.

How to do it
Set up a cushion or mat to kneel on. Then take a barbell and put two weight plates on either side. Hold the barbell at about shoulder width and brace your core. Slowly roll the bar out in front whilst maintaining a solid plank. Contract the abs when you are at your full length and bring the bar back towards your legs. 

What not to do
DO NOT go too far if you cannot even hold a plank. If you are too unstable, you could injure your lower back. 

Alternatives
If you are struggling with this one, then try using the TRX or a gym ball and perform the same movement.






So try this out and let me know what you think 

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Boost your fitness with this conditioning circuit

At Synergy Fitness Systems, we love a finisher and regularly end our sessions with some sort of circuit or interval station.

Throw this following circuit onto the end of your workout for an intense finish targeting the whole body.

Set your watch for 7 minutes. Complete the following exercises as a circuit, continuously with minimal rest.


- Box jumps (Video Here) 
- Ring/Bar dips
- Pull ups/chin ups

As for the reps, perform 3 reps of each during the first round, then increase by 3 reps for each consecutive round:

Round 1 = 3 reps
Round 2 = 6 reps
Round 4 = 9 reps

Round 5 = 12 reps
And so on until the 7 minutes are up. 



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Training for bigger legs

If you’re an athlete and you want to build leg size, you need to ensure you check off a few essentials.

- Firstly, you must find your 1 repetition max (the maximum load you can perform a single rep with).

- Then you should be performing the given exercise at atleast 65% of your 1 rep max. 

- Then you need to think about rep ranges and the number of sets. For muscle hypertrophy (building muscle), 6-12 reps has been shown to give best muscle building results, completing 4-6 sets. 

- Finally, the quality of reps is also important; during the eccentric (lowering) phase of the movement, you should look to perform this slowly and under control whereas the concentric (lifting) phase of the movement should be performed with more speed and explosion.   

Now you’ve got your checklist, you need to cover each movement that the legs create and choose the right exercises to build leg size:

I prefer my athletes to separate leg days into two categories – Hip dominant and knee dominant

Hip dominant day:

Deadlifts 6 sets x 8 reps

Romanian deadlift 4 sets x 12 reps

Sumo deadlift 6 sets x 8 reps

Barbell clean 6 sets x 6 reps

Glute ham raise 6 sets x 8 reps

Barbell bench step ups 6 sets x 8 reps

Knee dominant day:

Squats - 6 sets x 8 reps

Bulgarian split squat 4 sets x 12 reps

Leg extension 4 sets x 12 reps

Prone ham curls 4 sets x 12 reps

Leg press 6 sets x 8 reps

Nordic ham curls 6 sets x 8 reps

There are many more exercises you can do, but the above are my favourite as I feel they tackle all the muscles of the legs.

Further thoughts

During hypertrophy training, you will be causing extensive damage to your muscles and so will need to increase protein levels to aid your body in building muscle. I recommend using MyProtein because of the high quality protein shakes they offer. CLICK HERE to have a look at some of their products. 

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Delicious post workout smoothie you have to try

Blueberry and peanut butter protein shake

You have to try this delicious post workout protein shake!

Ingredients:

- 200mls coconut water

- 150mls milk

- 1 scoop vanilla Impact whey deluxe (Get 33% OFF today only - CLICK HERE)

- 1 table spoon 100% natural peanut butter

- Handful of blueberries

- 1 table spoon of Natural yoghurt

 

Directions:

Blend all ingredients for 30-45 seconds

Enjoy

You can get the ingredients HERE

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Matt

About the author

Matthew Healey is a qualified personal trainer and sports therapist. Matt is the owner of Synergy Fitness Systems in the UK which has been helping people change their body and improve human and sports performance for several years.

Matt has worked with many different types of clients from professional athletes, to recreational sports people to the general fitness population.

Matt has extensive experience in the fitness industry and has worked in many different settings including a top human performance centre in San Diego owned by Todd Durkin as well as working with sports teams and individual athletes and clients.

Matt’s area of interest is human and sports performance, and injury prevention and rehabilitation. At Synergy Fitness Systems, Matt focusses on improving the function, efficiency and performance of each of his clients and athletes.   

Your core training is wrong - Top 5 core exercises

I think it's been known for a long time now that a few sets of sit ups at the end of your workout isn't going to increase your core strength.

That being said, I still do not believe the majority of people give their core training too much thought, and definitely think most people aren't incorporating the most effective core training strategies into their workout programs. 

Why bother with core training?

Your core, is often referred to as the power zone. It is responsible for the efficient transfer of force from your lower body to upper body. If your core is poorly conditioning, your movements which require sufficient stability will become compromised and may well lead to an injury. You core will also help to resist against external forces to keep you safe and injury free. 

How do you effectively train your core?
Firstly you need to see which muscles are involved in the group known as "The Core". They include deep muscles around the trunk that act like a corsette and keep you stable as well as more superficial muscles which help with movement:

Rectus Abdominis - The most superficial muscles located at the front of the abdomen.
Transverse Abdominis (TVA) - located under the obliques, it is the deepest of the abdominal muscles.
Erector Spinae - This group of runs from your neck to your lower back.
Multifidus - Muscles under the erector spinae along the vertebral column.
External Obliques - located on the side and front of the abdomen.
Internal Obliques - located under the external obliques, running in the opposite direction.
Gluteus medius and minimus - Muscles at the side of the hip
Gluteus maximus, piriformis - Muscles at the back of the hip.
Hip Flexors - located in front of the pelvis and upper thigh. 


These muscles are responsible for resisting different movements like spinal hyper extension, excessive lateral trunk flexion as well as unwanted trunk rotation. Whereas they are also useful in initiating their own movements allowing your torso and hips to rotate, flex, extend and laterally flex.

After identifying which muscles and movements are involved in core training, then you must think about how to apply forces to the body to challenge these muscles. 


 
What are the top 5 core exercises?

i) Roll out (Anti extension)

This exercise is top of the list because not only does it massivley challenge the core not to over extend the spine, but it can also be scaled down and used with many different pieces of equipment to suit availability of equipment.

 









ii) Side plank
The side plank is a great exercises because it challenges the muscles that resist lateral flexion. It also works the muscles of the gluteal complex as you are actively pressing your knee or foot into the floor, thus actively abducting at your hip.

 

iii) Anti rotation - Stir the pot
An exercise I have developed with my clients, stir the pot challenges you from shoulders down to hips. Works the core muscles responsible for anti rotation. A great exercise for sports people - think about being tackled around the torso in rugby, this exercise will increase your strength to resist the external force making you rotate. 
See how its done CLICK HERE


iv) Plank on gym ball
Another exercise that resists spinal hyper extension. This is an isometric exercise meaning the muscles involved contract without lengthening or shortening. The gym ball adds increased instability to challenge your core more, but scale back by removing the gym ball if that is your current level. CLICK HERE to see how it's done.

v) Hip bridge 
Not always associated with core training, this exercises primarily focuses on strengthening the gluteal complex through hip extension. However, increase the difficulty by performing a single leg hip bridge or by adding a gym ball. CLICK HERE to see a barbell hip bridge


I like to incorporate core training into my client's workouts before the main strength section. This way, it becomes a priority and not an afterthought.

So give these exercises a go. If you have any questions or feedback just contact me. I'd love to hear what your favourite core exercises are.

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Matt

Weekend supplement sale continues - More great offers

It's day 3 of the massive MyProtein weekend sale and we've got all of today's discount codes below.

We have also put together some recommended bundles for you so keep reading.

But first, let's take a look at today unbeatable offers:

- 20% off the 15 best sellers at MyProtein.

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- Up to 30% off your order (selected products)

Basically, there is a selection of products (some of which included in our bundles below) the more you buy, the more discount you get

CLICK HERE and use code:

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We have more!

Check out our recommended bundles below as well sa our favourite pre workout supplements from MyProtein

Pre Workout
Product	Size	Servings	Price
My Pre	500g	Up to 31	£24.99
Pulse V4	500g	Up to 58	£19.99
Pulse:Gel	12x50g sachets	12	£9.74

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BCAA	120 tablets	60	£17.99

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Creatine monohydrate	500g	Up to 100	£6.69

Weight loss bundle
Product	Size	Servings	Price
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Thermopure	90 tablets	30-45	£13.99
Omega 3	90 softgels	45	£4.99
CLA	60 softgels	30-90	£7.99

This weekend Synergy Fitness Systems are offering our newsletter subscribers 2 more unbeatable deals at MyProtein

If you think a friend would like this, forward this email with this sign up link

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Matt

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