The single biggest lever for “feeling athletic” is reducing excess body fat.
Lowering body fat improves relative strength, speed, and how light you feel on your feet. If body fat is higher right now, jumping straight into “athlete drills” can tilt toward higher risk, lower reward.
So we start with the basics: eat fewer calories, train consistently, stay active.
The 4 Athletic Patterns
- Locomotion
Moving your body from point A to B in different ways: brisk walking, jogging, running, backward walking, shuffles, crossover steps, crawling. Think “how you move across space,” cleanly and under control.
- Triple Extension
Simultaneous extension of ankles, knees, and hips—what you use to jump, sprint, or drive a sled. We can express this at low risk (fast walking on the SkillMill, resisted marches) or higher (jog/runs, controlled jumps).
- Throwing & Rotation
Moving the arms and torso fast: medicine ball chest passes, slams, rotational throws.
- Push & Pull at Speed
Upper-body pushing/pulling with intent: strong, crisp reps rather than grinding slow tempo.
Where this lives in your program
We usually plug “athletic” work into your cardio/conditioning portion of your program.
Examples you’ll see:
• SkillMill: very fast walk, light jog/run, or heavy-resistance pushes that mimic a sled
• Bike/Assault Bike: short bursts (arms + legs) for 10–20 seconds with easy pedals between
• SkiErg: crisp downward strokes for short bouts, then easy strokes
• Rower: powerful leg drive + quick pull for intervals
• Medicine balls: Slams, Rotational Slams (high quality; high effort)
• Jump/Land progressions: step-down landing, moderate effort jumps or hops.
Choose your level (same intent, different dose)
- Level 1 (Low Impact):SkillMill power walk, sled-style pushes, bike or rower 10-sec brisk bursts
• Level 2 (Moderate): Light jog repeats, SkiErg 15-sec hard strokes, MB slams/rotational throws
• Level 3 (Higher Demand): Short run sprints, heavier sled drives, jump and hop drill variations
Safety & progressions (read this!)
- Power work is high benefitwhen dosed smalland performed cleanly.
• If it feels advanced, we favor Level 1–2 options—they deliver power safely.
The most athletic thing you can do
Show up, strength train, do your aerobic work, walk daily, and keep nudging calories down to a sustainable level. Advanced plyometrics aren’t required for most people, but the right sprinkle of athletic patterns will help you keep (and feel) your power as you age.
Respond to this Email with any athletic goals that you have!
– James Pratt