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There is something to be said for brief workouts. Back in the 80's, when I joined my first gym, it was common for workouts to last over 90 minutes. In college I would train up to 2 hours per day with a group of friends. We would spend 90 minutes lifting and 30 minutes on cardio. The routine was "3 days on and 1 day off". Although that was WAY too much time in the gym, each of us was in great condition. With that much time sweating and burning calories, it was bound to work. The problem was that our workouts weren't time efficient. With a few less beers per week and less calories, we could have got the same results with about 1/2 the amount of time spent in the gym. In fact, with enough intensity and with a proper diet I believe I could have maintained a low body fat percentage just training a few times per week. Although a few intense brief workouts are enough for a 20 year old to stay ripped, I believe the rules are different for a 40 year old.

[The time element of training is rarely discussed. Usually it is just assumed that less time training is better. If you are in your mid 30's or older, I think you might need to question this assumption.]

Raging Hormones, High Metabolism, and "Naturally Active"…

This past August, I spent the majority of the month on a West Coast road trip (one of the reasons I haven't posted in a while). About a week into our road trip we reached Huntington Beach, CA. This is one of California's prime surf beaches. Anyway, one thing I noticed was how the majority of the young surfers were lean and fit just as a natural result of their circumstances. Not only did these young surfers have higher levels of HGH than the older people on the beach, they were out in the water for 4-6 hours at a time. No wonder why they were in such outstanding shape. This isn't a big breakthrough or anything, but it made me think more about age and fitness.

Why Are Young People Typically Lean Without Trying?

I know this is a generalization, but people in their early 20's are typically lean with very little effort. On our road trip, we stayed in Sedona, AZ for a few days and went to a cliff diving spot called "Grasshopper Point". There was a group of college kids chugging beer and then doing crazy flips off of some pretty darn high cliffs. With only 1-2 exceptions all of these young people were in outstanding condition. You could tell they probably did a bit of training, but staying lean was probably as easy deal for them. Again, not a huge discovery or anything, it just made me think about age and fat loss a bit more.

[Grasshopper Point is an amazing swimming hole. On one side of the river is a beach and the other side is a steep cliff. You swim across, climb up as high as you want up the red colored cliffs, and simply jump back into the water. A perfect summer day!]

Let's Discuss What Young People Have in Their Favor

So I am going to generalize a lot here. We have all seen overweight teens and naturally lean 50 year old's. I'm talking about averages here.

1) More Natural Physical Activity Each Week:

I will use myself as an example. Back in college I didn't have a car and walked everywhere. Heck, just walking to and from class took up over an hour of my day, 5 days a week. In addition to that, I would play volleyball or pickup basketball 2-3 times per week for 1-2 hours at a time. I would estimate that I spent 8-9 hours per week of exercise outside of my gym workouts. These days I'm lucky to get in 2 hours per week of exercise outside of my gym workouts. So 7 more hours of activity per week, even at a low intensity level, is significant. Now wonder it was a breeze to stay lean back then!

2) High HGH Levels

Young people are fat burning machines compared to their older counterparts. A big reason for this is the high levels of HGH in younger folk. HGH is a natural fat burning hormone and declines as one ages. Exercise can slow down this decline, but can't stop it from happening completely. Not only are the normal HGH levels higher in young people, my belief is that the "HGH response" to a workout is greater in younger people as well (not proven by a scientific study as far as I know, just a belief of mine based on experience).

3) A Higher Metabolism

The combination of being more active and producing more HGH typically means younger folk are burning more calories even when they aren't active. The average 20 year old also has more lean muscle than the average 40 year old and this helps a bit as well. No matter how you look at it, the typical 20 year old is burning more calories day to day than the average 40 year old. Whether it is attributed to hormones, muscle mass, activity, etc…it all adds up to more calories being burned over the course of a day by a 20 year old compared to a 40 year old.

[San Francisco is one of the coolest cities I've ever been to. I could easily see living here. A big city in an amazing location.]

Let's Examine if LESS Time Training is What You Need

I like the idea of brief and intense workouts, but is that going to get the job done? If you are over 30 and struggling to get as lean as you were in your teens and 20's, it could be that you simply aren't active enough each week. Is training less the smartest approach to dropping that excess body fat? In my opinion there is a very good possibility that you need to spend a little bit more time in the gym, not less…especially if you aren't as active as you were in your younger days.

You Can Only Diet So Hard Before You Are Starving Yourself

I do believe that diet is the first thing to look at when you are trying to get lean, but there is a lower limit. If you cut back the calories too far, you will become malnourished. It is okay to eat slightly less than maintenance levels, but much lower than that for long periods of time is a terrible strategy. When reducing calories there is a lower limit. Even if you still need to lose body fat, it isn't wise to go far below this lower limit for long periods of time.

There is An Upper Limit to Workout Intensity

If you perform too many intense workouts per week, you will over-train. You will break your body down at a faster rate than it can repair itself. To be honest, even a few ultra intense workouts per week can result in over-training. There is an upper limit to intensity that can't be breached, even if you still have a lot of fat to lose.

["Redlining" is a term I like to use when someone is eating below maintenance level calories and training intensely, but is unable to lose any more weight.]

When You Reach the Limits of Diet and Workout Intensity?

What variable can you adjust if you are at your limits with diet and workout intensity? You can adjust the amount of time you train. This is logical, but it isn't discussed much. If you are stuck at a certain body weight, simply add in 30-90 minutes per week to your training and you will lose weight again. This has to be lower intensity training, if you are close to your upper limits already in terms of training intensity.

Why Cardio Is a Potent Tool for Fat Loss, In My Opinion

Cardio, whether it means walking outside or on a treadmill, is the perfect way to add in more activity without over-training. I like body weight circuits and HIIT and other versions of intense intervals, but there is a limit to how much I can do before I over-train. If I am still not losing as much body fat as I would like, I can't simply increase the intensity or I will burn out. What I can do is extend the amount of time I do steady state cardio after I do HIIT, or I can add in walking for 1-2 hours per week.

What Training in the 80's Taught Me

The big thing in the 80's was to bulk up in the winter and cut down right before summer. I don't think this is a great strategy, but it taught me quite a bit about dropping body fat. One thing I learned about fat loss was, given enough time on the treadmill or exercise bike and you can get as lean as you desire. This was before HIIT was known by the fitness community. Back then you would do steady state cardio for an hour per day, while eating a low fat diet to get extremely lean. It wasn't time efficient, but it worked. I even read about bodybuilders who would walk on a treadmill an hour in the morning and an hour at night to reach ultra-low body fat levels.

Steady State Cardio is the Great Equalizer

Unlike the 80's, I don't think it is smart to use steady state cardio as your main method of losing body fat. It simply isn't as time efficient as HIIT or other form of interval training. What I am saying is that if you are dieting properly and doing brief intense training along with HIIT, then it makes sense to add in lower intensity steady state cardio. Steady state cardio is one way a 40 year old can get as lean as a 20 year old. Steady state cardio will make up for the fact that you are less active and your HGH levels aren't as high, etc…this is why I call it the great equalizer. It is the ideal supplementary exercise to give that small extra push needed to burn off that little bit of stubborn body fat that many can't seem to lose when they get older.

If You Are Training Hard, But Are Stuck at a Certain Weight

So if you are training hard already and your diet is dialed in, then my advice is to train a little more than you are training now. It doesn't have to be time spent in the gym…it could be walking 2-3 times per week, in addition to what you are doing now. Another approach is to just add 15 more minutes of steady state cardio to what you are doing now. Again, make sure you get everything optimum and as time efficient as possible before adding in additional steady state cardio. The goal isn't to live in the gym or train non-stop. It is to get in shape.

Note: Sorry it has been so long since my last post. I had good intentions of getting posts done before my road trip, but ran out of time. Has a blast. I highly recommend Sedona as well as Huntington, for a full blown vacation. As far as places to live, San Francisco looked outstanding and hard to beat.

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Tags: Body Fat

Read the following article if you want to buy the Exercise Equipment. One of the exercise equipments is treadmill. A treadmill is a piece of sports equipment on which it runs. The tape can be, depending on the model in various speeds and angles set, or allow the retrieval of programmed exercise programs (such as cross country or driving game). The top speed is usually under 20 km / h. Treadmills are usually developed by electric motors powered. There is no risk in running about the band to pinch, as the distance between the band and housing only a few millimeters. There are also treadmills, which have no engine and move through their own speed. Some have it on a drive wheel, by the additional momentum created.

The other Exercise Equipment is dumbbell. A dumbbell is a piece of sports equipment, which is usually from a pole and two at the ends of fixed weights in the form of balls or discs there. Light weights are used in the gym and the fitness training, free weights, heavy weights during weight training and bodybuilding. If you want to buy these equipments or other types of exercise equipments, please visit atlanticfitnessproducts.com immediately.

Mark Sisson, over at one of my favorite sites, recently wrote a post called Grok Tag. It is so well written because his description of recess is "spot on". I lived for recess back in Elementary School! It was a blast. I remember basically doing all activities full throttle and having fun no matter what we were doing. This article is not a tip or anything like that. I just wanted to back Mark's message from his recent post.

[I will never be too old to enjoy a great rope swing! I need to find a great one this summer...and a good place for cliff diving. This stuff never gets old!]

I Have a Love-Hate Relationship With Technology!

I like the Internet, the convenience of cell phones, On Demand TV and things like that…but it make me a little sad that kids are missing out on a lot of playing outside. When I was a kid video games were around, but they weren't such a major focus. I typically played outside until I dropped and then would occasionally play a video game maybe 1-2 times per week. Oh yeah…and I was fine going through the day without constantly having to hear my favorite music. Am I sounding old?

Dodgeball, Waterballoon Wars, BMX Riding, etc.

I heard that kids aren't allowed to play dodgeball anymore. I think we had 4-5 different types of dodgeball (Free Dodge Ball, Indian Doge Ball, Soak Em', etc). If I was in charge dodgeball would be encouraged in all schools (maybe not mandatory). Many other rowdy activities are now discouraged at school. We played a game where a football would get thrown up in the air and whoever caught it was a target to get tackled by the mob of kids. Another game was playing soccer and whoever was dribbling the ball would be a target for everyone to "slide tackle". Slide tackling was BIG when I was in 4th-6th grade!

Mark's Post Reminded ME of How Much Energy We Had!

There were a lot of games that involved full-blown sprinting back then. Tag was one of the games that really got kids sprinting. I talk about "HGH Flush" on this site (being short of breath, skin gets red and hot to the touch). Tag creates a huge HGH Flush! I love the energy that Tag creates especially when you are being chased. For some reason you can push past the pain barrier when you are trying to escape.

Tag is NOW Getting Banned in Schools!!!!

Pretty soon they are going to be cutting rope swings down! I am sad and a little angry. I am going to support Mark's message about "letting kids be kids". Please head on over to his site and read his outstanding article on the subject—>Grok Tag . Mark has actually designed a workout that involves Tag, Burpees, and Pushups. This is thinking outside of the box and is probably one of the best blog posts I have read in a long time.

Note: I have been posting a little less than normal lately…I will do my best to increase the amount of posts. I'm just finishing up on a project that is taking a lot of my time right now.

Tags: Main, HGH, HGH flush, mark sisson, marks daily apple, Video Games, workout

People who have trained in the gym for years often look at something like the simple push up as a beginner's exercise. I mean, why would they want to perform push ups when they can get a "real" chest workout with heavy sets of bench presses. This is a big mistake, and one that I have been guilty of. It is easy to look at the simple push up as working the exact same muscles as the bench press, but with less resistance. I would like to talk about why you should include the push up in your routine, even if you are someone who trains with free weights.

[Here are a few guys "benching" on the edge of the River Thames in London using decent form. Yes...a bad joke, but better than the typical bench press article picture...a bulky guy in a lifting suit bench pressing a ton with his face as red as a beet.]

What I Never Knew About Push Ups

Before I talk about the push up, I'd like to give thanks to Chris over at Conditioning Research for linking to a great article. I've said it many times on this site, but it amazes me about how Chris stays on top of all of the recent info in the Fitness industry. His site is outstanding and I would recommend subscribing to his RSS feed. What I want to do is link to the same article, but just highlight some of the points I find interesting. I'll also include a few video clips and then lets discuss this in the comment section. Here's the full push up article: What You Dont Know About the Push-up.

Push Ups Balance Upper Back Strength With Chest

Ever see a guy who benches too much and his shoulders are pulled forward? Or a guy with large pecs and bad back development? Well, push ups can work the upper back in ways that a benching cannot. The scapula is allowed to go through a full range of motion with push ups, but is constricted in all forms of bench pressing. When the scapula goes through its full range of motion with push ups, it fills in the area in between the shoulder blades (upper and lower trap thickness). It also develops the serratus muscle, which frame the lower chest and abs to a certain extent.

The Most Important Part of the Push Up

Ever hear this saying…"you don't know what you don't know"? I had no idea that the very top of the push up was the most important part. The scapula won't fully contract until the elbows are all the way locked out. What you need to do is push to lockout and then make sure your upper back isn't sagging down at the top. Here is a video of Zach Dechant showing proper form.

[So the lockout is important. Notice how his upper back isn't sagging downward. You want to continue to push shoulders towards the floor even at the top of the movement.]

Push Ups for Better Abs and Obliques?

So I knew that push ups worked the abs in a way that is similar to planks. Here is what I didn't know… According to Jeffrey McBride, push ups work the obliques better than side bridges. So not only do push ups work the serratus muscles, they work the obliques extremely well. These are the muscle groups which "frame" your abs. Here is a highly scientific, textbook style diagram…

[Most of us are lagging in a bit in this area. Push Ups will help tighten up this part of your midsection. Another good exercise if you want to tighten up your obliques is Renegade Rows (link to an article on this blog).]

Do You Like to Throw Things?

…well push ups will also work your "throwing muscles" much better than the bench press. This works for any sports that involve throwing…football, baseball, softball, etc. Go over and read Zach's article because he goes over this in detail. Zach is a coach at TCU for both baseball and football. Here is his stance on push ups with athletes who throw…"At TCU, our baseball athletes and quarterbacks incorporate some form of the push-up year round in their training. At various times, we even eliminate all forms of pressing in lieu of the push-up and its many variations."

How to Make the Push Up More Challenging

Obviously one way to make the push up quite a bit more challenging is to do them with one arm. I have a whole post dedicated on mastering the one arm push up, but these work the muscles in a different manner than using two arms. Here are some videos demonstrating a few ways to make the two-arm push up more challenging.

Walkover Push Ups

[Stack two Olympic plates. Start with one hand on the floor, perform a push up and then walk across the plates and perform another push up. Extend all the way to the top before walking across the plates. Beginner start with 5 reps and will work up to 10+ per side. This exercise really works the scapular area (around the shoulder blades).]

Chain X Push Ups

[Criss-Cross chains on your back and perform regular push ups. You can use longer chains where a lot of the weight is on the floor at the bottom. There will be an increasing amount of resistance as you get closer to the top, as more chain links will get pulled off of the floor. The greatest resistance will be at the top of the movement. This strength transfers well if you want to increase your numbers in the bench and military press.]

Explosive Push Up Jumps

[Zach believes these to be the best serratus exercise by far. These are to be done for high reps. The reason you want a band to assist is that you are aiming to do most of your pushing towards the top of the movement. When you simply do explosive push ups, most of your effort it at the beginning of the movement. When done properly, Zach claims your serratus will be worked so intensely that it will feel like you have broken ribs the next day. Obviously he doesn't mean that literally, but you get the point.]

Lateral Band Push Up Walks

[This one is the better for mid-back and shoulders than any of the other push up variations, because you have to continually spread the band. I haven't done these yet, but they look awesome. You put a light ankle band around the wrists, take 3 lateral steps and perform 1 push up. Take 3 more lateral steps and perform another push up. Begin by aiming to get 5 push ups per side for a total of 10. I can see how this would quickly make your entire upper body thicker due to working both your chest, delts and mid back so well, all in the same exercise.]

So Include Push Ups for Full Upper Body Development

Again…this is yet another example of how body weight movements work a larger group of muscles than similar free weight lifts. I still plan on lifting with free weights due to the fact that you can overload specific muscle groups, but will supplement them with more body weight movements. Also, those of you doing TACFIT or other body weight routines are probably getting a much more complete workout than it would first appear.

Check Out Zach Dechant's Blog…

The first link is a guest post he put up on another site. His personal blog is here: Zach Dechant Sports Performance Training. I have never communicated with Zach, but appreciate the content he has so far on his site. He is a conditioning coach for baseball & football, at TCU. Really good info, especially for those who are interested in improving in "throwing sports". Stop on by his site for some innovative training tips…not anything like the typical fitness info you have heard a zillion times.

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Tags: Strength Training, bench press, free weights, high reps, military press, muscle groups, planks, push ups, renegade rows

So I am extremely excited to introduce you to a whole new view of training and a paradigm shift when it comes to being fit. I know some of you reading this will have heard of Scott Sonnon, but I bet you haven't read too many interviews with the guy. The reason for this is that he is one of the premier special forces trainers in the world right now. He is in serious demand right now, training counter-terrorism unit, Navy SEALS, police forces, SWAT teams, etc. He spent 6 years traveling all around Russia and masterminded with former USSR Olympic Coaches and trainers of Russian Special Forces. He took this cutting-edge research and improved upon it during those 6 years and has been introducing it to the U.S. These days, everyone wants to pick his brain when it comes to fitness and conditioning. He doesn't have a whole heck of a lot of time to do interviews, but luckily I nailed a quick Q&A with him. The following is one of the best interviews I've had on this site so far.

[Ever heard of terms like "Stored Elastic Energy" or "Sequential "Summation of Forces"? When you learn conditioning from Scott, prepare add about 10-20 new terms to your vocabulary!]

How I Landed The Interview With Scott Sonnon

Back in October of last year, I purchased a fat loss course put together by Adam Steer and Ryan Murdock. I dropped my gym membership setup a private blog for people from this site who also purchased the course. I spent 3 months posting to this private blog daily and worked through this tough program along with everyone else. Out of the 200+ that joined me on the private blog, less than 20 finished the program to completion with me. I learned that Scott Sonnon was the guy behind what Ryan and Adam were teaching and that they learned these brutal (but effective) training techniques from him. All 20 of us who finished the program got great results, but it was a tough and humbling 90 day period. I knew that I wanted to eventually get an interview with Scott. It took some time, but Adam and Ryan finally hooked me up. Thanks guys!

Rusty: Okay Scott, you have some serious credentials. I have about a zillion questions that you could answer, but I will keep this narrowed down to Special Ops Training. So how did you go from martial arts to full blown trainer for the Russian Special Forces and Israeli Counter-Terrorism Units?

Scott: I happened to be in the wrong place at the right time, and I guess I had the perfect combination of character flaws to want to go places others are smart enough to steer clear of. As a multiple-time champion and national coach of SAMBO – Russia's national wrestling style — I was offered a difficult choice.

I could be the first American to formally intern in Russia at the SAMBO-70 Academy, or I could be dropped into a government "think tank" of trainers made up of ex-USSR Olympic coaches, Russian Special Forces, Military Intelligence and Political Security. I chose the latter…

…and I spent 6 years traveling back and forth to Russia and all around that country. I gained incredible insights into the now defunct Soviet Superhuman Sports Machine. Fortunately, we were able to absorb their research and take it to the next level in our country.

Over the years our work has leaked out of the government side and into the sports community – the NFL, NHL, MLP, UFC, etc… – and eventually out into mainstream awareness through public fitness programs. But I still nurture my contracts in the special operation and federal law enforcement communities, because frankly, I find them easiest to relate to. I guess I've never been quite right in the head. I find that by going where I've never been within myself, finding out just how deep this apparently bottomless rabbit hole of human potential goes, seeing both life and training as a martial art to be mastered every day, I can only find solace with other like-minded spirits who revel in the same brand of spiritual masochism. For me, it's an honor to train among them and to share my experiences with them, whether that be with our hard-core heroes here at home or when I'm invited to train allies like the Israeli special forces and the Italian secret service.

Rusty: I went through a course by Adam Steer and Ryan Murdock last year that was tailored around your Circular Strength Training principles. This might be the first routine that actually increased my flexibility and increased range of motion. Can you explain why your techniques are so much better than traditional stretching for flexibility?

Scott: In general, static flexibility training is meant to change the resting length of soft tissue. It stretches tissues long or hard enough to cause a permanent deformation, much like pulling a plastic bag until it can't spring back to its original length. You certainly could address tight muscles that way, but ultimately it's a danger to joint integrity, and it isn't helpful for muscle growth or sports performance.

By contrast, mobility exercises focus on restoring the natural range of motion of the tissues surrounding a joint complex. It's a little bit like shaking out a muscle when it's tight. Tension is a frequency, and meeting it with vibrations of the same frequency releases and restores the natural resting length of all muscles involved. It's more complex than just shaking out a muscle of course, but that can be a starting point.

[I turned 40 this year as did Scott. One of us is really flexible. Can you guess who? Hint: it isn't me by a long shot!]

Understanding why mobility exercise produces superior results over static stretching requires a quick primer from the leading edge of anatomical theory. The structure of the body resembles two bags connected to each other. The inner bag contains the hard stuff: bones and cartilage. The outer bag holds the muscle, and it's tacked down to the inner bag at the points we refer to as "insertions." If you want to restore the resting length of a muscle, you must first release the inner bag at the points where it connects two or more bones – the "joint capsules." Releasing the inner bag not only gives you the ability to load and absorb resistance in exercise, but since the body's balance, coordination, agility and reactive strength all lies there, it also improves your sports performance and the contractibility of your muscles, allowing you to grow bigger and stronger.

Both static flexibility training and regular resistance training cause the outer bag to become glued down to other bags, forming attachments or "adhesions." If you don't use mobility exercise to restore the resting length of these tissues, the tightly knotted muscles become thick and leathery, and they shorten. Short, tight muscles have less ability to contract, which means you'll plateau fast in your training, and you'll stop growing.

Mobility keeps your outer bags fluid and prevents them from being glued down. It also releases the inner bag, so you're always growing.

Rusty: My guess is a lot of the special forces guys you train, and bodyguards are probably similar to me when they start out. They are traditional gym trained guys who are in great shape, but most likely get rocked by your routine. What do you find are the biggest weak points for guys who haven't gone through your flow and Circular Strength Training based routines?

Scott: "Get rocked" is a pretty accurate description. The biggest lack I see in guys who come from the "Go Big or Go Home" mentality is that they're incapable of moving pain- and injury-free through any obstacle with ease and imagination. By contrast, my guys and gals move very much like parkour or cirque performers within just a few weeks of training. It has to do with two geek concepts that I learned from Russian bioengineers: Stored Elastic Energy (the ability to absorb and retranslate force – to change direction, twist, bend, dive, climb, and leap suddenly and from odd angles), and Sequential Summation of Forces (or "expressible power" – the difference between getting hit by a bat and getting cracked by a whip; the bat will hurt and maybe even break a bone, but the whip will sever a limb).

Think of it this way. Most traditional exercises are performed by pressing or pulling front-back, up-down or side to side. But the body isn't built to express power that way. The body expresses power through angles and diagonals.

You don't walk by stepping forward with your right leg and right arm at the same time. Try it. You look and feel like a motor moron, don't you? We walk asymmetrically: left arm forward, right leg forward, alternating with right arm forward, left leg forward. We also throw, swing, strike, etc that way. If you only train in 1 or 2 dimensions, you become less and less able to translate your power into other skills, eventually becoming encased in a coffin of your own dysfunction. And that's how most of these folks train.

But with a couple weeks of TACFIT under their belt, these "go big or go home" guys suddenly feel like martial art masters. Why? Because that's how old-school, hard-knocks martial artists have always trained – at least they did until the past couple decades, when "exercise physiology grads" decided to impose their robotic movements upon the lethal power of sophisticated movement in traditional martial arts conditioning.

Rusty: You are training guys to get in top condition to defend their life or the lives of others. What makes your principles so effective when it comes to combat, self defense, etc?

Scott: Because real fitness is self-defense. Real training is combat. There is no other determining factor. Ultimately, when we say "fitness" we mean "fit to perform in the worst crisis, for as long as possible." I realize that my definitions are controversial, but frankly, I'm not concerned with what other organizations think about us any longer. I once sought their approval and I spoke at their conventions and conferences, but now I just call it as I see it.

What are you fit FOR? You should be fit to fight, and fit to fight for as long as humanly possible. If you're not, then you're just a hobbyist.

Now, don't get me wrong, most martial artists nowadays aren't fit to fight sleep, much less an attacker. They've memorized dance moves with as much expressible power as a 5 year old mimicking The Last Airbender.

If you're actually FIT… you are tactically fit. And if you're tactically fit, you're far better off than the martial artist who has memorized thousands of techniques but couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper death trap.

Conditioning is the ultimate submission hold. Whoever can absorb and retranslate collision, change angles, reorient and ground at odd angles, wins. Not bigger, faster, stronger. We've proven that in every arena, from the micro of human combat to air battles with armed and armored jets.

You walk into a room and you see a circus of puffed Jersey boys with Mr. T starter sets bedazzling their wife-beater cleavage. And then you see that one wiry, ripped guy leaning against the exit banister, smiling quietly amongst the noise – and you instantly recognize that the "commando in the corner" is the man you want at your 6 when the shit hits the fan.

Rusty: I have a work space in a downtown area that is getting tougher by the day. If I have an extra 2-3 hours per week to learn good self-defense techniques, how is my time most well spent. Any particular classes that you would recommend? What are your thoughts on Krav Maga?

Scott: You'd be best off working a generalized mobility session first solo, and then with a partner. Helping a person through mobility drills with your hands teaches you where he can be most efficiently manipulated for takedowns, throws and submissions. The movements encoded in TACFIT Commando are defensive tactics. They're not just a random adjunct to defensive tactics but are actually the support system for them. You can't do sometimes what you don't do daily. TACFIT Commando is exactly what you need.

[Watch at around the one minute 30 second mark and see how Scott goes from the ground position to easily standing. He makes a really difficult move look easy. I actually didn't know that was possible.]

Krav Maga in Israel is like Sambo in Russia or Jiujitsu in Brasil or Muay Thai in Thailand: ugly, brutal and short. Unfortunately, that doesn't sell a lot of classes – and most martial arts schools are designed to put asses in the seats rather than power in your performance.

You'd do much better by training to the point that you can't see, can't talk and can barely think, and then going one repetition further with good form. That final repetition, where you'd do anything to surrender but you manage to keep form and go one more step, is more valuable than any "black belt." Take that from someone who has earned several black belts that are buried somewhere in my closet.

Rusty: I know that most of your training is geared toward strength, mobility, and function…but what about a guy who wants to look great on the beach? How does a body trained using your principles look different compared to a typical gym trained body?

Scott: Puffy jiggly bumps do not make a beach body. The girls just laugh at them anyway… or at least they do as soon as some badass steps out of the waves with his skin shrink-wrapped around the gnarled limbs of a commando physique LOL. No, I can't say that my program will give you the typical gym-trained body. And I'd sell my soul to the Devil before I'd do you the dishonor of giving you the appearance of strength alone. I give you both GO Muscle AND Show Muscle. A body that'll serve you just as well on mission as it does on shore leave.

Rusty: I am pretty darn interested in TACFIT. I didn't get back in February when you guys launched it…mainly because I was launching a muscle building course.Can you give me an outline of what this program is all about?

Scott: Sure. We put the Commando program together to maximize continued muscle growth while ensuring optimal fat loss. The program targets the energy systems of tactical response: that means high intensity, three-dimensional movements done for repeated bursts of short duration, with fast recovery. Each "mission" can be completed in less than 30 minutes, and those 30 intense minutes melt fat faster than hours of cardio-style exercise. When you're on vacation, too busy to get to the gym, or simply want to shake things up a bit while still building muscle, this is the perfect equipment-free solution.

Each individual exercise in the program has been carefully chosen to forge the highest level of specific conditioning while building and reinforcing tactically relevant skill sets. This translates to tireless stamina, extreme range reactive strength, ballistic speed, the agility and coordination of a Free Runner, and active recovery and pre-habilitation. And it's simply a hell of a lot of fun to do.

Oh, and each exercise in the 3-month plan comes with 3 different levels of movement difficulty, so it's completely accessible to beginners while still difficult enough at the higher levels to challenge even elite athletes. If you follow all 3 months of the program and then repeated them with each level of movement difficulty (building your neurological sophistication as you increase your "go muscle"), you'll have 9 full months of challenging training right there at your fingertips.

Rusty: I was looking at your Facebook page and it looks like you travel around to train Police Departments with TACFIT. Is this the same material as what is in the course?

Scott: Yes, police, military, security, fire. Everyone trains with the same program, just not at the same level. Most systems toggle variables like intensity, volume, density, frequency, speed, etc. But what sets TACFIT apart is that it manipulates complexity. When an agency comes to TACFIT, they have a diverse fitness population that needs to train together as a team. That's one reason why there are several levels to each exercise in the TACFIT program.

The way the program is trained is more important than the specific level of the technique, and the level of the technique is more important than the type of tension produced, and the type of tension produced is more important than the tools. That's why we can do a TACFIT session with absolutely no equipment: anywhere, anytime.

And many times that could be in the desert, in the jungle, on a mountain, on the tundra, on a ship, at a hotel, or wherever you happen to be.

There are no excuses. Everyone trains, no one quits. Everyone finishes with perfect form, just not at the same level of movement complexity. And that's why TACFIT commandos are always improving at such a rapid rate. They don't train poor technique just to finish.

Your nervous system is the only real weapon you'll ever have. We treat it like gold.

Rusty: I love traditional gym workouts with free weights, etc. Can I successfully alternate TACFIT for a few months along with my favorite gym routine for a few months? Is there something I should do to insure I maintain joint mobility when not doing TACFIT?

Scott: Yes. It's not the type of tool that's important, it's the formula used. If you understand the formula you can alternate in some of your other favorite workouts, if you wish. Understanding how to use "mobility" as a specific warm-up and "compensation" as a specific cool-down holds true whether you're doing a traditional gym program or TACFIT. And you'll learn how to incorporate these elements by doing the TACFIT Commando program.

Rusty: Chuck Norris in his prime vs Bruce Lee in his prime….who comes out on top?

Scott: Whoever's friend shows up first with a gun.

Rusty: I appreciate your time in answering these questions. I know you are extremely busy, but I know the readers here really appreciate hearing directly from the originator of this cutting-edge training program.

Scott: Rusty, it's my pleasure. Warriors aren't born, they're made. They're forged in small towns and in garage gyms, and they're hardly ever what people expect. They're usually the ones who simply bust ass every day while others blab about the latest reality show or game station. They're out there, and if you're any indication of what your readers are like, I suspect you've got quite a few "commandos in the corner" brother. Be safe.

[Scott and his team are giving out a free sample TACFIT workout through this Thursday. They are relaunching the program to those who didn't get a chance to get the sample workout back in February. Click the banner above this to get this awesome ebook and two videos for free.]

Note: I don't think people (including myself) did a good job explaining just how innovative this program was when it first launched back in February. I mean…How many people have Scott's credentials? If you like this interview, make sure and grab this free PDF while it is available. Really innovative cutting-edge stuff here!

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