by Sean St.Onge

In my first installment, we tackled the Farmer's Walk exercise. The simplicity of picking up heaps of weighted objects and carrying them at distance, yet with a purpose! This exercise has been around for a millennia, or longer..heh, much longer. So much that it is often over looked as an actual exercise. I have stated this before, yet I feel it needs reminding. The Farmer's Walk exercise is a staple here at 212 H & P for warm ups, and occasionally we tend to spice them up from time to time for progressive reasons. The phrase "FARMER'S WALK" being bellowed out from the microphone during the beginning of class is never a surprise. As coaches and trainers, we have a bit of method to our madness for starting your epic sweat-filled journey with this little number. Although reading the faces of the masses, I get the feeling you do not always share our enthusiasm.

Farmer's Walk is a tremendous exercise. It has often been called other names, notably "Suitcase Carry" etc. The focus is

core stability, hip stabilization (this increases when only using one weight)
retraction of scapula/shoulder blades, thus allowing proper upright anatomical positioning
The use of grip strength is challenged here as well. Grip strength can correlate to back and leg strength by use of a fancy thing called irradiation. When doing Farmer's Walks you engage your grip, and your Rotator Cuff fires. This allows your upper back muscles and shoulders to "pack" or retract properly

So please, I am not going to name names, but let's give some respect to the walk! If it helps...I usually channel the song "Walk" by Pantera...which happens to have the words "respect" and "walk" in it...and it's a totally Bad @$$ song.

File that under nothing new under the sun as people have been picking up stuff and walking around with it since eons before the pyriamids were built and designed by aliens!

With Father's Day recently passed, my newly born daughter somehow made her way with my wife to the store to get her old man a beauty of a grill as a gift!

This is pretty much what it is! With a super sweet smoker on the side! I will be doing my best/worst renditions of Bobby Flay's Barbecue Addiction!

With food and grilling on the mind...Check out and use this recipe from Alton Brown from Food Network for Grilled Pork Tenderloin...yea it's tremendous...TREE-MEN-DOUS!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/grilled-pork-tenderloin-recipe/index.html

Lastly, on behalf of my family just wanted to say here, A HUGE THANK YOU, for all the love, gifts, cards, and congratulations from all of you on the arrival of our lil lady! MUCH thanks, 212 really is powered by you, but most of all remember, YOU empower US to keep you moving.

Until next time...SOAP BOX...OUT!