It sure is, and I am chuffed that it shows 🙂 Had a great strength day today that I have written about on the forum.

Cheers
Marianne

PS Just think were you will be in 6 months time 😀

Yes John, that’s exactly what I would say to do 🙂 You may find the pistols without the box a little difficult due to your flexibility issues, especially the ankle and the opposit hamstring, but you can give them a try. Just watch your knees though, as they can be an issue with pistols for some reason. I had knee pain when I did them. I haven’t done them since. The box version should be fine though 🙂

Hi DLH, Jump ropes come very long to allow you to cut it to size. The link below might be helpful

http://www.saskschools.ca/~gregory/gym/skiptips.html

Hey Lisa, Welcome 🙂

The pistol was and still remains one of my nemises lol. The move itself is all about confidence, flexibility, stability and strength. To master it you need a lot of patience and determination – oh and strong knees!

The advice I have on progressing from a partial single leg squat is to use a chair or platform behind you and gradually lower the height until you build up strength. With me and many people the problem with the pistol is not the grounded leg, but the hovering leg and its flexibility. Keeping this leg out in front is difficult if you have tight hamstrings and tight hip flexors. One way to overcome this problem, is to actually stand on a platform and leg your other leg hang off. Without needing to hold it up, you can perform the pistol in more comfort. I used this technique in my workout “Ultimate Leg Workout”:

In “Fat Burning Machine” workout at the top of this page, I used another progression technique, which is a reverse pistol, from a squat down, and then pistol up.

Lastly, one thing I found most challenging was the confidence to sit back on one leg. Let go of the fear and never let the frustration get to you, it makes such a difference if you just have fun with it.

As you can see I like my long-winded answers, I just hope it actually answers your question.

Anyway, good luck with the progressions, let me know how you get on 🙂

Marianne

I’m a Canadian fan of your site and work! Thanks for all the inspiration and challenge. I check in regularly. You have a great presence for making these intense workouts serious yet attainable. Keep it up! I have a question – what’s the secret to learning the pistol squat? I’d so love to put work into learning this move. Grateful for your time.

Hi Aaron, this type of workout can be done as often as you like. For fat burning it is best to use a fast paced HIIT workout first thing in the morning before breakfast. Either that, or use it as your post-resistance cardio. I would do similar workouts 5 times a week.

Hope this helps.
Marianne