Hammer and Chisel Challenge - Week 1

Hammer and Chisel - Week One

I am documenting my Hammer and Chisel Challenge here on my blog. You can view day by day posts by following my IG or Facebook. This challenge has been everything that I had hoped for. I was looking for something that was similar to the P90X variety, and this falls right into it. The whole idea behind Hammer and Chisel is to get CHISELED. It's about strength and getting shredded. Now don't get me wrong, the program can be perfect for other goals such as: gaining more strength/endurance, becoming a better athlete, getting lean, losing weight, and maintaining fitness. I do not see this as a bulking type of challenge, although there is a lot of lifting weights. I can see how you can bulk easy by lifting more weight, but to be quite honest, so far it seems that there are a lot of reps, so using a lot of heavy weight wouldn't be possible for most people.

Beginners?
As I am going through this program, I am getting my butt kicked! There are modifications provided, but in my honest opinion, I do not recommend this challenge for people who are at beginner fitness levels. I would say that this program is for the hardcore intermediate to advanced. But again, this is just from my experience.

Runners?
As for any program for runners, it's best to do this during your off-season. Coming from Florida, there really isn't much of an off-season, it's more like you have to create your own off-season, which I feel is very important. Over-training is the worst feeling in the world, and I've done this many times. Sometimes you just have to put your ego aside, and just suck it up and take a break. Whether you are doing Hammer and Chisel during on or off season, I would recommend that you run 3-5X per week. I've been running almost everyday, but nothing too hard core. I normally do a one mile (sometimes 1 1/2 mile) warm up before my workout, then another mile or mile and a half afterwards. Depending on how my body feels, I may just do a run in the beginning, and not the end. I will do my longer runs on my Hammer and Chisel rest day which is on Thursdays.

Hammer and Chisel Workout Sheets - Click Here!

So let's go with how my first week went. Here is a quick run down on how my week went, and if you have any questions, feel free to connect with me here.

Day 1, Week 1
The workout was Chisel Balance, and it started out with pistol squats right off the bat which I'm terrible at! I struggled most with the Balance Row Pistol Squat and the Single Leg Dead Lift. It was a great first impression of what was in store for the week, and the next 60 days =).

I did a 1 mile warm up run, and a 2 mile run afterwards.

Chisel Balance - Split Squat Jumps

Day 2, Week 1
In my Online Hammer and Chisel Challenge Group, one of the things that was asked was "What was my goal for the challenge?" and I responded with to maintain my health and active lifestyle, but also work on my abs =) I am also training to gain strength and endurance for my upcoming trip to Nicaragua to film one of the toughest adventure races in the world called the Fuego Y Agua Adventure Run. Workout today was Hammer Plyometrics, another day of butt kicking!

I did a 1.5 mile warm up run, and 1.5 mile cool down run.

Hammer Plyometrics - Just a few exercises from this brutal but awesome workout!

Day 3, Week 1
ISO Strength Chisel was on the menu for today! I did this workout at the park with a fellow Coach and accountability partner Steven. I love the fact that you can do these workouts pretty much anywhere if you have the equipment. I'm traveling right now, so I've been working out at gyms and the outdoors. At home, most people use the workout DVD's and Beachbody on Demand Online Streaming, but I've been previewing the workouts the day before, and using the worksheets at the gym. Do what works best for you, and most importantly, make sure that you are doing the exercises correctly.

After the workout, we did a 1.5 mile run.

ISO Strength Chisel at the park!

Post Workout Meal

Day 4, Week 1
Today was REST DAY, so this is when I do more of my longer runs, but I was so sore from the previous workouts, so I opted to do a short 5K. As always, I believe in listening to your body. I have over-trained a few times during my journey, and trust me, it is not worth it. Put your ego aside, and play it safe, you'll get better results that way.

3+ mile trail run today:

Day 5, Week 1
Today's workout was ISO Speed Hammer. It was a very short workout, but man did it really pack a punch! For the ISO exercises, you basically do 10 reps of a particular exercise with on rep being 1 count followed by a 3 count ISO. After the 10 ISO reps, you finish it with 10 regular reps, which is pretty tough after basically doing the previous in SLO-MO.

ISO Speed Hammer - 10 Chin Ups after 10 ISO's 

Day 6, Week 1
Today was a challenge because earlier I filmed and ran 5+ miles at an obstacle course race called the Muddy Brute Challenge. I'll be honest, I was thinking about skipping out on my workout since I was a bit tired after running all day, but I was good, I took a little rest, then went to the gym later in that evening. If you want to check out the video that I created at the Muddy Brute Challenge, click here.

Chisel Endurance - Incline Press Video 

Day 7, Week 1
Total Body Hammer + 10 Minute Hammer Abs

This was a killer workout because I started getting used to the short workouts, and this one was double the amount of time as the other workouts, plus it was tough! On top of that, I had to do abs lol. I was glad to finish the week off strong. It was definitely a challenge, but that's why it's called a challenge right. Looking forward to week 2, feeling strong.

Total Body Hammer + 10 Minute Hammer Abs 

(Video on Side Delt Raises)

So that was a quick run down of my first week. I'm not sure if I can be as organized with the videos every week, but I will definitely do my best. As always, you can see my posts on IG and Facebook as well. If you would like to join me, or get in on my next Hammer and Chisel Online Test Group, feel free to message me here, and I'll get you started. 

Hammer and Chisel reminds me of P90X, but with all new exercises and a whole different structure in how they schedule the workouts. If you like P90X or even CrossFit style workouts, then you'll love Hammer and Chisel, especially if you opt to doing the workouts at the gym using the worksheets. I basically have the worksheets in my iBooks app, and I keep it handy with me along with a timer app. If you are more into bulking and lifting heavy, then I would go with the Body Beast Challenge. 

Looking forward to sharing more of my journey with you, stay awesome!

Related Links:
Hammer and Chisel Challenge, Week 2, Month One

Hammer & Chisel Online Test Groups Forming Now - Contact me!