KEEP YOUR FITNESS AHEAD OF THE CURVE

If you’re bored of barbells and want to shake up your training, look to the Onnit Academy for a brand new twist on building strength

In one corner of a gym in Austin, Texas, coach Cristian Plascencia has a client crawling on the turf. In another, a broad-shouldered man in his thirties wobbles on a balance board. Near a Skierg machine, an NFL free agent pushes through a series of light kettlebell lunges. Down the hallway, a Crossfit athlete executes flawless handstands.

The gospel according to Onnit preaches that you shouldn’t always lift heavy, and that training with more than just barbells and dumbbells will deliver tangible results. Here, you’ll use maces, clubs and battle ropes – treated as gimmicks elsewhere – as training staples, and you’ll feel and function all the better for it.

Since opening four years ago, Onnit has established itself as a haven for innovative training ideas, many of which are worth integrating into your own workouts. The key here is rotation: forget the ups and downs of reps, or the back-and-forward movements of sprints. To truly progress, you need to twist. Unlike the dumbbells and barbells you typically use, maces and clubs are heavier on one side, creating an “offset load”. Fighting to keep them steady adds rotation to every exercise.

Analysing how you manage this imbalance reveals your weaknesses. “We’re looking at these asymmetrical patterns, asymmetrical loads, and using them to identify what may be deficient,” says Onnit’s chief fitness officer, John Wolf. “If we address your weakest link, your whole system will benefit.” Deploy this rotation philosophy on home soil to become a complete athlete in weeks.