20 minute workout

20 Minute Home Gym Workout

20 Minute Workout| Skierg, Kettlebell Swings and Landmine Grapplers

Motion

20 minutes is all you need to get a hell of a workout.

This 20 minute workout combines the SkiErg, kettlebell swings and landmine grapplers to create one hell of a training stimulus using just 3 exercises.

The SkiErg and kettlebell swing combination is one of my favorite gym combinations of all time.

Yes, they are both somewhat linear, but the opposite actions is what I love.

Kettlebell swings are mostly hip extension focused. (Yes, I know the eccentric loading is great with kettlebell swings).

SkiErg is a flexion heavy exercise. The pull downward requires a lot of lat and core contribution. The hips hinge as you finish the stroke, followed by moving back up into extension to reload for the next pull. One of the great features of the SkiErg machine is being able to walk up to it and walk away from it quickly. It’s awesome.

Landmine grapplers, well, read below about why I think landmine grapplers are badass.

Both are completed in the standing position, feet firmly fixed to the floor. In a world where machines are taking over, standing up like human during a beat down is refreshing.

The Workout

https://youtu.be/eWCeImqs7Rs

Set a timer for 20 minutes.

Complete the following exercises in cyclical fashion:

Kettlebell Swings x8

Landmine Grapplers x8

SkiErg x150meters

Choose your kettlebell weight and throw a plate on the barbell for the landmine grapplers, and you’re ready to move.

I used a 32kg kettlebell and a 25lb plate on the landmine apparatus.

The beauty of this circuit is how little space you need. I’m clearly training in a larger home gym space, but I could be getting after it inside a bedroom closet and still get the same training effect.

Maybe I’ll shoot another video doing the same workout inside of super tight space to make my point.

The best training spaces are IMPERFECT.

The rest periods are designed to be INCOMPLETE. You won’t want to start into the next exercise, but do it anyways.

The idea is to start the next exercise BEFORE you’re completely ready to do so, yet be mindful of when it’s inappropriate to start the next bout of work to avoid injury (technical failure, etc).

You have to be an adult in the gym, make adult decisions, and know thyself.

If the next round is going to involve crappy reps, stop. Rest. When you’re ready, get back to it.

It’s a fine line… and only you know when you’re toeing that line.

Landmine Training is Sexy

There’s no other way to say it.

Landmine training is sexy and I love my landmine set up. It was a small investment for the vast amount of training options I gained.

For anyone who owns a barbell and plates, but doesn’t own a landmine, SHAME ON YOU.

Kidding.

Adding landmine trainer to your home gym can change a lot about how you workout, including more pressing, pulling, squatting options. As it relates to this workout, more rotational training.

My favorite landmine exercises involve rotation.

Grapplers are a classic rotational exercise that can be tweaked for rotational power work, grinding strength or cardio conditioning.

Every swipe through the middle feels like this movement has application beyond the gym setting. And no, not all exercises give me that same warm and fuzzy feeling.

Landmine Grapplers bring joy to my soul.

They aren’t a cheesy isolated core twist. Grapplers are full body exercise that begin on the floor, traveling up the body, through the hips/torso and out the hands.

Biggest Problem with this Workout

Access to the SkiErg will be the biggest issue for people to give this exact workout a go.

If you have a few dollar laying around, the SkiErg is an incredible piece of equipment to own.

I have to admit I purchased my rowing machine first, but the SkiErg was a much more anticipated addition. It hasn’t disappointed one bit. Mine is well fixed to a wall.

Here are a few more ways the skierg can be used in workouts.

If you don’t have a SkiErg to play on, here are a few exercises that can get you close:

  • Medicine ball slams
  • Battling rope waves or slams
  • Explosive resistance band flexion moves
  • Macebell or sledgehammer slams into a tire.
  • Towel Snaps (say what?)

Give this workout a shot and let me know how it went.

Cheers.

Interval Workout| Lizard Crawl + 500m Row

20 minute Workouts, Ido Portal, Workouts

Mixtaping different disciplines of fitness to create unique workouts is a hobby of mine lately.  

Yesterday, I found myself short on time.  I had roughly 20 minutes to make some workout magic happen.  Assessing the previous day’s workout, I decided on two modes of exercise:

  • The Lizard Crawl
  • Rowing

The goal:  total body training effect (in under 20 minutes)

Short burst workouts are a perfect solution to time-restricted days.  Days where I’m tight on time, but high on motivation.  “Short”… not be confused with “easy”.    

Generally, shortening a workout means the intensity gets cranked up to offset the decreased volume and duration.

Lizard Crawling is a locomotion pattern popularized by Ido Portal’s movement catalog.  

 

It involves crawling forward (or backward) in a low prone position, much lower than a traditional bear crawl.  The Lizard Crawl is a total-body exercise, well worth learning and working through the progressions.  

Most people will feel limited by their upper body strength when Lizard Crawling.  The strength needed in this particular range of motion may need some acclimation. 

That being said, there are plenty of Lizard Crawl variations to accommodate any skill level.

Here’s an example:


The Lizard Crawl, though graceful and rhythmic when performed by great movers, sucks the life out of you across even moderate distances.  It’s a very complex and demanding pattern.

Rowing, on the other hand, is, well, rowing.  

The rowing erg is beautiful in its simplicity,  yet brutal in its ability to break a person’s soul at higher intensities.  Though machine-based, rowing is one of those near total body activities that I cannot recommend enough. Rowing is primarily a posterior chain, upper body pull/lower body push action.

A quality rowing erg will cost you some cash, but across the long-term, it is well worth the investment.  

Turns out, the Lizard Crawl and rowing compliment each other perfectly.  

I’ve created workouts in the past using short distance Lizard Crawls and 250-meter row intervals, but never beyond that distance.  The 250-meter is a fantastic distance for an all out sprint.

Today I increased the challenge a bit, bumping the row up to 500-meters.

Here’s how the workout was structured…

Lizard Crawl for 20 yards

+

500 meter Row

  • Repeat for 6 rounds.  
  • Rest for 60-90 seconds in between each round.  

That’s it.  Two movements and roughly 18 minutes of time to work with.

Warm-up with something, anything.  A jump rope or some simple dynamic movements will work fine.  I do not advocate skipping warm-ups all of the time, this situation is unique, an outlier.

A cheetah doesn’t ask a Gazelle for a chance to warm-up before pursuing it for nearly a mile, it’s worth considering a human may not always have adequate time to warm-up.  

Many times, doing less things, but doing those things better makes for the best workouts.

Aesthetics and performance are built incrementally, piece by piece, workout by workout.   

Thoughts and Suggestions…

Find a pace on the rower a few levels below your personal best.  I aimed for a 1:35 min/sec pace for the 500-meter intervals, knowing that my best 500 meter was roughly 1:27 min/sec.

Why do this?  Because you will not be able to maintain a personal best pace for 500-meters across 6 rounds, with incomplete rest periods and lizard crawling before hopping on the rower.  Setting a challenging pace just below your best will get the training effect you’re after and allow room for progression in the future.

After standing up out of the rower, expect your heart rate to be sky-high.  60 seconds of rest will not feel long enough, and it shouldn’t.  It’s incomplete rest by design.  Use every second to collect yourself before the next round.  Walk around slowly, stay upright and slow your breathing.  

Keep in mind, a 500-meter row is not an easy distance to row on its own.  Adding pre-fatigue in the form of a Lizard Crawl will zap you.

When rest comes to an end, force yourself into the Lizard Crawl.  You’ll want to rest longer in later rounds but don’t.  Stay strict.  When rest is over, settle your breath and start crawling immediately.  

Anticipate the first few rounds of Lizard Crawling to feel great, followed by a steep drop off.  

If the full Lizard Crawl is too aggressive, scale it back.  Head over to my YouTube page and search “Lizard Crawl”.  You’ll find a bunch of different Lizard Crawl options I’ve played around with. 

Or, simply go with a crawling pattern in higher, more manageable body position, such as Beast (Animal Flow).  

If you found this post while surfing the inter-webs, thank you for stopping by.  

Do me a big favor and try this workout today, tomorrow or the next time you’re in a pinch for time.  

 

For more about Ido Portal and some his training methods, check out this post:

 

Cheers to you, 

Kyle 

20 Minute Workout| Kettlebell Complex and Air Bike Intervals

Quick Tips

Here is a 20 minute kettlebell complex and air bike workout BURNER.  

This workout uses the same kettlebell complex I used for 90 days straight, just to see what would happen.  

Progression is key to improving performance. 

The original complex looked like this:

Original Kettlebell Complex

The goal was to keep the workout brief.  Under 20 minutes.

20 minutes is a sweet spot for me, especially with higher intensity efforts.  

I’m able to get the training effect I want, without losing technique to fatigue or subjecting myself to unnecessary injury.  

Higher quality work in shorter amount of time.

I really like these short burst sessions that address cardio and strength in one shot.  Life doesn’t always allow for 60-90 minute daily workouts.  We wish it did, but it’s turbulent.  

Being able to walk in the gym, warm up quick and get after it is awesome.  

The Workout

20 Minute Kettlebell Complex

Biking.  The addition of the 1-minute air bike ride at the end of the round shakes things up.  The goal is to keep the RPM above 80.  

The first few rounds were fairly easy, but rounds 4 and 5 were a bitch to keep pace.   

Why bike?

Biking is a low impact activity that requires ZERO skill.  Get on and ride.  Air bikes involve the entire body via turning the pedals over while pushing/pulling the dual action arms.

Biking is a safe way to condition while mitigating stupid workout injuries.  

Fatigue.  The ascending rest period tactic was perfect.  

Ascending Rest Periods

As fatigue accumulates, so does the amount of rest.  

The extra 5 seconds of rest added to each round helped managed my fatigue.

75 seconds of rest will seem long in the beginning.  But again, the fatigue hits you like a slap across the face.  

In rounds 3, 4 and 5… the 85-90 seconds rest passes by quickly.  

During your rest period, focus on breathing.  Deep and full breaths. 

Breathe deep into your BELLY, not your chest and neck.  

Exercise technique.  Metabolic conditioning is designed to stress the muscles and cardiovascular pretty aggressively, but it should NEVER come at the expense of technique.  

Scale the workout for yourself.  Start with longer rest in the earlier rounds.  Use less weight or bike for 30-45 seconds at a lower RPM instead of 1 min at >80 rpm.

Explore and tweak it as you go.  You can expect each “round + rest” to last 4+ minutes, with the later rounds lasting longer because of the increased rest.

 

 

Kyle