Burpee variations.

The burpee is the most versatile and complete exercise that I know of. It can be done anywhere where there is at least one meter wide and one's height+1/2meter long of floor space for the body to accommodate.

It can be done in Spartacus mode(1 minute of workout followed by 15 minutes of rest, for 3 rounds), or in maximum-repetitions mode, in which one exerts the maximum number of repetitions for a given exercise, varying from one type to the other, with or without small pauses in between, as many rounds possible.

What's nice about burpees is that no equipment is necessary(although adding kettle/bar/dumb bell weights causes more challenge), the space required is minimum, the amount of time is also reduced(if only 1 round is exerted, it will last only 12 minutes), the type of exercise is versatile, ranging from cardiovascular exertion, to endurance to weight lifting(if weights are added to the formula).

It really is the most versatile exercise I know of. There is a caveat though. It is gruesome. It really is going to activate one's heart rate rise, the majority of muscles will feel sore after a while, and a sweat pool at the spot is almost assured. That's why it is worth it. Because it is worth it. It will build muscle, will power and burn a lot of fat. It is one of those exercise sessions that not only sculpts the body but also cleanses thy soul. It makes one a better person.

Never quitting.

Part of the intention of exercising everyday is to exert discipline, and enhance the mind and muscle endurance.

It is very easy to quit, nonetheless the consequences of quitting are to never be recovered, because consciousness would make one feel remorse, there is no turning back time to redo it the right way. The best way to avoid remorse is always exercising(everyday), beating excuses and bestowing all will power to the session of workout. Without falling into obsession of course. 1 hour a day is a reasonable amount.

Most people find the most absurd excuses: Today it is raining(It is not raining indoors, e.g. the gym), I am tired today(and so you were yesterday, and the day before, and the day before... even more so), too many activities for today(Is there such a thing? How about resting when you are sleeping), I'll do 15 repetitions less than usual because today is a less intensive workout day(why not do 15 more to punish our temerity?) My forearms and hamstrings are sore(How about some stretching?)

It is about mental weariness.

More than physical muscular fatigue, the most weary aspect of physical training is the mental fatigue. It is built into us, the hypothalamus indicates when it has been too much exertion and dissuades us from more exercise. However, if we push further, we can achieve even more and augment the threshold of  fatigue.

The biological reason of why this happens, is because our ancestors as hunter gatherers had to go through much effort for hunting and gathering food, if that energy wasn't spent wisely the community might have ended up without meal for the day, that reason is why we are lazy and only through will power we can really go on with the physical activity. Our reptilian brain sections have not adapted fast enough to entertain the idea that we are not going through famine and that resources are abundant enough to risk injury and extra physical exertion.

Deferring entropy.

Inevitably, at some point in time, we start to age, and our skin starts to shrivel, our muscles deteriorate, our will for energetic activities wanes and our lives become more passive. It is part of the biological order.

Nonetheless, there are steps to be taken in order to postpone the consequences of DNA sequence unlacing, exercises and balanced diet is part of the formula.

Everyday exercise is not only recommended for healthy people, it is sought by narcissists who wish to preserve their looks despite their seniority. Some people are motivated to exert daily because they are more attractive to the opposite sex by doing so, apart from the health benefits. Most people seem to be less interested in maintaining health because they don't know the burden of chronic disease. One doesn't know what one has until one looses it. So until that happens, imprudent people will tend to ignore that motivation altogether.

Contradictory excuses come to mind, like "exercising wears the tired body" and "there should be an easier solution".

Well let me tell you that there is no other solution but exercising. People may tend to prefer surgery or artificial means of maintaining hair, stretched skin and sculpted bodies, but even the best surgeons can't create the natural look of athletes and people following fitness regimens.

Good nutrition, namely abundant intake of fruits and vegetables throughout the day, modest dinners and high fibre based breakfasts, bestows a body and mind that will be more gladly accept exercise, as well as nourishes the body with all the necessities at the molecular level.

Regular massages with fatty acid rich oils like sunflower, castor and olive oil on the skin daily allows the skin to be nourished from the outside while also cleaning the pores of impurities, ergo I recommend such massage before a shower(to avoid a greasy look as well).

Left not aligned with right.

I just recently found out that by exerting biceps curls with I manage to do 10 more with my right arm. Then I did a foot curl and found out that the same situation happened.

The way to overcome such symmetrical imbalance in force, is reached by making more weight and/or more repetitions on the weaker side.

Let's always keep in mind when making any kind of dual limb exercise, to exert the same force with both limbs whilst avoiding imbalance of the centre of gravity.

How to avoid chicken legs.

Chicken legs are the inevitable result of working out extensively the upper body while ignoring the lower body.

 Any gym is filled with these guys that think that in order to achieve the magazine adonis look, they need to just work chest and biceps, and the rest will be covered with shorts or pants.
What they probably ignore is that after a certain point, even with shorts and pants covering the legs, it will be noticeable. Another negative aspect is that it will destabilize the whole body, making it more difficult to engage in full body workouts and general movements, staying in balance becomes harder and injuries because of cramps are more frequent.


I know this will surprise nobody, but the solution for the chicken leg phenomenon is to work the legs out. Squats, lunges and kettle-bell lifting with a resistance band attached to it are excellent exercises for increasing leg strength and definition.

The frequency must equal to that of upper body. If the upper body is exerted three times a week, then the lower body should also be worked out three times a week.

That aspect of full body workout that I keep mentioning: all in one, time efficiency; is another way to avoid the lower body lag. When the full body is exercised, the concentrated exercises can be left for another day.

Real athletes are not voluminous.

There is a tendency of people to misjudge volume with actual exercise proof. The reality it is just proof of hypertrophy(heavy and concentrated weight lifting with few repetitions.)

The athelte will have a more

slim appearance, in fact nobody will notice he/she is an athlete unless shirtless or wearing shorts. Well shaped limbs and concave waist are part of the body of the athlete.

So to achieve such body and to have muscular definition, the best way that I know of is the Spartacus workout, which is 1 minute of a repeated exercise followed by 15 seconds of rest. 10 times in a row.
Depending on the types of exercises, this varies from difficult to overwhelming.

Push-ups, squats and sit-ups are tough, but the toughest exercise is the burpee. I will create an article just to address that specific exercise and why it is so effective(and devastating, because it works cardio and some variations really work all the main muscles in the body.)

I can assure you, you will hate 50 burpees in a row. It is tough, exhausting, detestable, irritating, humbling and despairing. But that's why it works. Done well, produces no damage to the articulations.

Bare in mind that the most effective exercises are the most exhausting and swelling. At 30 repetitions, My reward system starts to shun me and convince me to give up. It will happen to you as well, but you must continue up to the limit you have set yourself from the beginning, hopefully as much as your cardio resistance allows you to(this is when a pulse meter is handy.)

It is also time efficient because it only takes ~12 minutes, and if you want you can do three rounds with 2 minute rests in between for a total of ~ 45 minutes. All of it without any equipment, just your body and 4 square meters.