Body on a Budget - Part 1

Body on a Budget - Part 1

Who really has time to workout? Surely those who are paid to train full time are able to get it done but they represent a small minority. We all have to make some sort of sacrifice in order to lead a healthier lifestyle, but from personal experience, I can tell you that that sacrifice doesn't have to come at a hefty price. In fact this article will show you just how to train when you are short on time, money, space and just about every other lame excuse than your lazy ass is going to come up with. So without further a due I present part 1 of the 3 part series entitled - Body on a Budget.

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First of all let me tell you how this idea came into fruition... I spent the better part of the last 5 years working in the geophysical sector of the oil and gas industry. In those 5 years I have worked a plethora of 'jug-hound' jobs, then as a seismic driller's helper and eventually a seismic driller. I am sure there are not many jobs out there that are more physically demanding then a seismic driller's helper when drilling over 1000m a day.

Negative 30 degrees Celsius is not hing new to Pete the Heat.

Not only are you lifting solid steel drill stem all day you also have to battle the terrain and elements for 10-12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Most of us have worked stints in the winter of over 55 consecutive days. Lesson #1 - Your job should not be an excuse not to train unless your job is harder than this one.

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"So Del... If your job took up 12 hours of your day when did you workout and still get enough sleep?"

Well actually I found ways to train at work much of the time. However most people don't have a 80 pound air hammer to do squats with, or run sprints with 40 L of 'Seismic 2 in 1', or spend the day climbing mountains with 70 lbs of cables and geophones. So instead I will show you how I trained after work and still slept 8 hours.

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My day would start at 6:00 am sharp. After a week in the field I always wake up without an alarm. There is a meeting at 7 am every morning to discuss 'important' matters then its off to the bush until then end of the day, which usually comes at 7 pm.

The trick is to already have a plan... If you don't have a plan you plan to fail. Very cliche, very real. So by 7:15 pm I am in the shower getting ready for supper. The shower/supper moments are truly divine when you just put in a hard 10 hours of physical labour in the middle of nowhere at -35 Celsius... At 8 I would be finished eating and heading back to my room. A room that measures no bigger than your average jail cell for those of you who have been in the clink. Lesson #2 : Lack of space is no excuse not to train unless you live in a room smaller than a jail cell.

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Body weight (BW) exercises are a great way to get a solid workout with little space and no equipment. The problem with traditional BW exercises (push-ups, sit-ups) is that most of us learned the wrong way to do them. Not to mention they are also the most boring exercises known to man. In the next part I will show you how you can spice up even the blandest of exercises to make them more exciting and challenging, even if you are in a oilfield camp room without any equipment. Lesson #3: Not having free-weights or a gym is no excuse to not train unless you are a stub (no arms or legs).

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Body weight exercises are not the only way to train in this situation. It can be the foundation of your workout but a perfect way to supplement your workouts without using weights is the resistance band. There are many types of resistance type products out there but the even the most basic rubber band set up provides a great workout.

I used to take a 40lb set of dumbbells with me to work but sometimes you cannot travel with weights. They are cumbersome and if you are traveling via the bus or you are flying, you will probably get dingged with extra baggage fees. As a baller on a budget myself, I prefer to take my resistance band instead. Not only is it easy to pack it also costs around $10. And if you cannot afford one I will show you awesome BW only exercises anyway. Lesson #4: Being broke as a joke is no excuse not to train unless you do not have the basic necessities covered (food, shelter, clothing).

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Now that we know it is possible to have a decent workout without traditional equipment (weights) we can move on to the exercises. As I mentioned before, there are many different exercises you can do but what you will be doing really depends on your goals. If you are a power lifter you probably know that your lifts will go down if you are unable to stack the weight. And if you are bulking, do not expect that a resistance band will replace the dead-lift... So this is not a miracle program that will get you the same results as one that implements other resources. No, this is a program that I developed while living in hotel rooms and oilfield camps. It is a program that enabled me to achieve and maintain big results with little time, money and space.