Evan Warren's Personal Training

Happy Tuesday, I wanted to share this great blog post I found from top strength and conditioning coach, Eric Cressey, on why head and neck position is important while lifting (spoiler: it affects your shoulder health). On an additional note: The cervical flexors play a role in engaging the Transverse Abdominus through the kinetic chain (the TVA is your deeper core muscle), which means neck position and cervical care are also important for successfully performing exercises where you need core strength and stabilization (ex: squats, deadlifts, lunges, overhead pressing, bench press, pull ups, and many many more). https://ericcressey.com/why-you-shouldnt-look-up-when-you-l

Fitness tip of the day: Notice your workouts aren't as effective as they used to be? You may either need to change your routine, or work on de-loading your reps, sets, and weight throughout the month based on your goals. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me anytime and we can chat #fitnesstips #strength #progress

I'm looking for 5 men and women ages 25-40 who want to look as fit as a fighter without fighting who live in the Santa Monica area. Benefits of my MMA Strength and Conditioning Program are: - Gain powerful, lean muscle mass - Extra energy to crush work goals... - Feeling of empowerment Spots are extremely limited and I'm only looking for 5 people who are ready to make a change today. To apply, fill out the google form provided by the link below and I'll be in touch if you meet the requirements. https://goo.gl/forms/kt6dQmTZRMLMEQz33

It's been a cool minute since I've posted anything, so here's a PR video. This is my 61 year old dad doing 11 consecutive pullups earlier in his workout (the 12th one was a half pull so it doesn't count) Age is just a number because anyone can do this stuff. What matters is taking a smart approach towards training. My dad started working with me two years ago after completing physical therapy for a running injury, and was no where close to doing this kind of exercise. In fact..., we mostly did posthab exercises for a year because of his age and he sits during work like most people. So how was someone his age able to improve this much in such a short time? Especially at an age when it's hard to put on muscle. It's simple, we went slow. Just like the tortoise and the hare, you'll get overwhelmed or tire out quickly when you bite off more than you can chew. Sure, I've put him through some hellish workouts, but I always made sure it was stuff he could do. I let him get good at doing a specific workout before making it harder. That's how martial artists train. Slow it down, expect less, and get smaller results more often. That's how you improve quickly. #pullups #superdad #releasethebeast

Grip exercise for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Tiger Claw Plyo-Pushups Keeping a solid grip on someone's Gi during sparring or competition can be tough, especially towards the end of a training session. Most people view grip training as just working forearm strength, and forget about the fingers. Here's an exercise that you can do to help increase the strength of your finger muscles, and the best part is theres no gimmicky equipment required. Just bodyweight. Here are my suggestions ...for releasing the beast on this exercise. You can do a bent knee progression like the demonstration in the video, but I recommend starting with 70-80% of your weight on your hips in a quadruped position (hands and knees). This will allow you to manipulate how difficult the exercise is, test your finger strength, and keep your hands safe. Fingers should be rounded the whole time, as if you're grabbing onto someone's Gi. Our goal is to strengthen the finger muscles in the same position that you'll use while grappling, so splaying your fingers apart, or hyperextending them is going to do the opposite of what we want. If you have a hard time keeping them rounded, regress to a regular pushup, and keep a majority of your bodyweight on your hips until you can progress. This isn't an easy exercise, so start off slow and test the exercise out at first, then ramp it up as you gain confidence Try this exercise for Jiu-Jitsu gains, and follow me for more exercises and motivation for releasing your inner beast #bjj #grappling #beastmode #releasethebeast

Confidence is important when releasing the beast. It is developed by succeeding at a goal you've set out to accomplish. Failure will happen sometimes along the way to success, and that's ok. The way I look at it is you win or you learn. Stay positive, and it'll be easier to stay calm and look at what your next steps will be. Try one new thing that will get you closer to your goal this week.... #pullup #beastmode #releasethebeast

If you have Asthma, you should read this or pass it along to someone who does. It could be the difference that makes a workout program good, or one that will leave you feeling frustrated. Message me if you have any questions on this or any other fitness questions #asthma #health #fitness

On this day 8 years ago, I received my black belt in Kempo Karate. The test for it was tough, but the feeling of accomplishing a goal that I had put so much effort towards made the trial quickly fade away It took me 13 years to get my black belt. Thirteen years of struggling, having days where I didn't want to go, doing insane training regimens that would make you puke from thinking about it, and getting muscular fatigue in strange places (who in the world gets sore toes an...d fingers?!). I'd do it all again though, as strange as it sounds. Even though I'm dealing with an injury that was more or less caused by the bone structure of my hip (kicking may or may not have sped up the process). Having a goal that I felt so strongly about gave me the drive to accomplish a lot of things, and greatly improve myself as a person. The journey can be just as enjoyable as the goal. If it isn't, make it so. The only person who can do it is you. #blackbelt #mindset #beastmode #releasethebeast

Got that Jay-Z state of mind today. Happy #flexfriday everyone, stay beastly #jayz #empire #beastmode #releasethebeast

First time implementing Headbanger Pullups into the workout, so I thought I'd add a bit of metal to this gram. My goal with this exercise, as it is with a lot of the stuff I do, is to progress to my ideal state of mind and body. To be in sync, to move swiftly and with sincerity and character. Take what you will from this, but that is what I think makes a great fighter #headbanger #pullups #mondaymotivation #beastmode #releasethebeast