3 Nomad Exercises Fit For The Gym- AKA Quit Being A Pressdown Princess

One thing I've tried to stress from my first post, is that 'The Nomad Way' isn't about creating or cultivating any 'revolutionary' new style of training, au contraire; it's just a response to not having the tools to train in a manner that we already know (anecdotally) is optimal. 

Bodybuilders and physical culture enthusiasts of all shapes and sizes have been training for aesthetics and performance improvements for a long, LONG time. I don't want to reinvent the wheel, I just want to have a spare tyre for emergency purposes. 

Real talk, if I was to retire from the events industry tomorrow, I'd build a gym, stick a bed in one corner, a barbecue in the other and invite you all over for an epic housewarming. I love the gym.

The concept of being a Fitness Gypsy was born out of necessity, adapting what I would be doing in the gym to what I could do on the road. That being said, even if you can get into a facility on a regular basis, there's a still a few things you can take away from training like a nomad, to improve your current regime, to prepare yourself for times you can't make it to your club and honestly, to depussify yourself just a little...

On the road again... Photo Credit: Chris Parkes- www.christophotographic.photoshelter.com

So with no further adieu here's my top three picks for fitness gypsy exercises you should be adding to your gym plan.

3. Rope Climbs/ Rope Pull-ups-

Any exercise that involves pulling your own bodyweight through space can be humbling, you either move or you don't, there is no swapping the pin out and making the stack lighter. Once you've mastered a perfect 10 pull-ups (we don't do chin ups; your chest touches the bar or it doesn't count. We're trying to build better bodies, not bigger egos) you're fairly limited in terms of progression. (If you don't have extra weight readily available). 

All the way up, please.

Throwing a thick rope over your pull-up bar or power rack occasionally (or for a concentrated period of a month or so) will enable you to work a pull-up from a variety of different angles and grips, challenging your back, forearms, and core with stimuli they may never have been subjected to before. The carryover to other exercises is massive, many lifters suffer with their grip becoming the weak link in the heavier lifts; instead of reaching for the straps (which are a crutch at best, until you're brutally strong) grab yourself a bit of old rope and build a set of forearms that don't need accessories.

2. Loaded carries

I have no idea why farmers walks aren't more prevalent in the average lifters arsenal, well; other than the fact they're really, really hard. I was performing some fast paced carries with four 25kg plates a while back, when another guy in the gym accosted me to tell me he'd be 'worried' that would 'put my back out'. Not sure if he was concerned for my health or trying to convince himself that's the only reason he didn't indulge in such shenanigans. No comment.

My work involves a hell of a lot of heavy carrying, so this is a rare case of a 'functional movement' actually being.... Well, functional. 

Grab yourself a heavy dumbbell (heavy is the keyword here) or a few plates in each hands and take them for a brisk stroll, 25- 50m, whatever you can manage... Get ready to have your shoulder stability, grip, deltoids, back, traps, legs and breathing challenged. If this doesn't add thickness and depth to your upper body, you're doing it wrong.

Walk this way.

The same carryover effect applies here, but there's also a huge mental aspect. Keeping forward momentum when gravity is trying to drag you through the floorboards, when your forearms are screaming for a reprieve, when the weights are rattling off of your legs will build a tremendous amount of raw grit. You'll know what it's like to really work for a living.

1. Ground To Overhead... Anyhow

Whilst I'll concede that the deadlift is probably the king of the gym jungle, there's nothing more impressive than taking a weight and moving it through the maximum possible range of motion; from stationary on the floor, to locked out overhead. Especially when that weight isn't necessarily ergonomically conducive to being hoisted...
If you've seen my Instagram, you'll know that I like picking odd objects up, anywhere, anytime. Anything that isn't a barbell or dumbbell will force your body to work in a manner that it's unaccustomed too, everything else aside this is psychologically  beneficial as it makes regular gym equipment feel pleasant by comparison.

Get comfortable being uncomfortable.

Some facilities are equipped with 'odd' objects such as strongman logs, kegs, even stones. I'm well aware that not everybody is that fortunate, so how do you recreate this in a controlled environment with an eagle eyed gym manager breathing down your neck?

Health and Safety. (Those are what I named my plates)

Grab a few plates and lash them together (one might even suffice, depending on your strength). Ensure they're secure and pick them up from flat on the floor to chest level. If you've chosen a challenging amount of weight, you might need to use as little bit of knee drive to get it up there (good on you). From there, carefully but aggressively press the plates overhead to lock out. Reverse the movement pattern to get that weight back to the floor and get those reps in. 

A favourite of mine is 6 ground-to-overheads (with two 20kg plates), every minute, on the minute for as long as you can. 

As with rope pulls and farmers carries, these have a huge amount of realistic carryover to other movements and you'll work a lot of your core/ stabilising muscles in ways they'll really wish you wouldn't.

Oh and performing all of these exercises will make you look cooler than Steve McQueen driving the Batmobile through a forest fire,

You're welcome.

AT