Men_s Health Australia - April 2016__

APRIL 2016^91

FITNESS

THE INSURANCE DECADE

In your thirties your life is largely in your

hands. “A lot of the things that impact on your

health come from risky behaviours, motor

vehicle accidents and abuse of drugs and

alcohol,” says Dr Gary Richardson, associate

professor of medicine at Monash University

and chairman of Foundation 49.

Look at your thirties as the preventive

decade, Richardson advises. Wear sunscreen,

stop smoking, lower your alcohol intake to two

drinks a night with three nights off a week and

cut down on red meat, he advises. “The habits

you set in place now can set you up for life.”

SKIP A BEAT

Use Mayr’s 15-minute rope

drill to get shredded

wherever you are

• Slow skip, 60 seconds


• Intense skip, 30 seconds


• 10 burpees


• 30-second plank


• Repeat five times

“This gets your metabolism firing

allday,”saysMayr.“Youcandoit

anywhere, you need about two

square metres.”

PARALLELED

STRENGTH

Mayr recently took on the

mother of all body-weight

exercises, the planche, under

the guidance of Marcus Bondi,

founder of the Bondi Bodies

YouTube series. Use Bondi’s

tips to elevate your body to a

higher plane.

(^1)
D o p u s h - u p s w i t h y o u r
fingers pointing forward and
hands placed as close to your waist
a s p o s s i b l e. D o f i v e s e t s o f 10 r e p s
every day with a very slow
movement (five seconds up/down).
(^2)
U s e p ar al l e l b ar s t o r i s e u p
onto straight arms and pull
your knees into your chest for a
tucked static hold. Exhale, contract
your abs and squeeze the bars tight
to activate all muscles.
3
While in a tuck position,
begin to kick out one leg at a
time. As you become stronger begin
double leg extensions, holding for as
long as possible. Once you can hold
for five seconds, you’re ready for the
planche push-up.
HIT NEW PEAKS
As you enter your thirties you will experience
a slight physiological decline, says Professor
David Bishop, research leader in sports
science at Victoria University. “Your cells are
starting to take a little bit longer to regenerate
and your time to recover is longer,” says
Bishop. Exercise intensity will be harder to
maintain, he adds. To counter this, Bishop
advises you set yourself physical challenges,
like an adventure race or boosting your bench
press, that will force you to push your body to
new limits.
‘‘I started to realise there was
so much more I could do
with my fitness if I used it
correctly, rather than it just
being about looking good’’
TO DISCOVER MAYR AND
BONDI’S TIPS ON PULLING
OFF A PLANCHE, SCAN
THIS PAGE