Do-it-yourself gym - Military Health, military health and wellness, military physical fitness - Military Times

Do-it-yourself gym

Suspension trainer inventor Randy Hetrick makes no secret of the origins of his popular device. He says that back in his days as a SEAL operator, the original TRX prototypes were fashioned out of what he had available while stashed away for weeks on end in submarines and safe houses: simple parachute cord.

Since those early field-expedient days, the TRX has evolved into a highly engineered piece of equipment made with tough nylon webbing, industrial stitching and spring-loaded adjustment points. No wonder it’s one of the most popular pieces of workout gear among GIs and pro trainers alike.

But that quality will cost you — about $200 for the deployment-ready TRX “Force Kit.” Most will tell you it’s worth the price. But maybe that’s too steep for you right now, or you’re just not sure the TRX is a good fit for your workout. Maybe you’re deployed and just need something to get you by.

Whatever your reasons, if Hetrick could build a SEAL-worthy body-weight trainer with 550 cord, then you can, too. And it’ll cost you next to nothing. Maybe exactly nothing, if you have a few basic supplies already.

We’ll also show you how to build a super-lightweight version small enough to fit in your pocket. It’s not the prettiest thing, but it’ll deliver the same high-power workout and you can take it on runs or out to the field, or double it up with your other trainer for workouts with all your appendages dangling in midair at the same time.

Want more variety? We’ve got plans for a quick and easy resistance band system and even a speed rope to amp up your cardio. And our system, unlike most commercial products, is completely modular. Use the handles from our body-weight trainer with the bands, and join multiple bands together for as much resistance as you want.

If TRX stands for Total Resistance Exercise, call our go-anywhere gym the THREAT: Total Homemade Resistance Exercise and Training.

Grab some 100-mile-an-hour tape and parachute cord and get ready to jump into action.

Body-weight trainer

The anchor

This is what you’ll connect to a pull-up bar, rafter, door jamb — whatever works — to suspend your trainer and connect its single free-moving line that will become the “arms” running out to the two handles.

1. Start with two 10-foot sections of cord. Holding them together side by side, consider them one line.

2. Tie an overhand loop at the top of the lines. It’s a little trickier with the two lines, but the second cord will double your protection where all your weight focuses.

3. Begin tying butterflies down the length of the cords.

4. As you come to the end, finish it with another overhand loop. When you’re done, the 10-foot sections should be about 2½ feet. (An alternative that’s not as strong, but easier: Take about 20 feet of rope, double it over and join with a double fisherman. Begin with an overhand loop and work your way down with evenly spaced overhand knots, then end with another overhand loop.)

The arms

When this piece is complete, it will feel like a single line with two handles on each end. Just like the TRX, both arms will be adjustable. For easier cord management, you may want to use cords of two different colors. We’ll do that here, using tan and black cords, to ease the instructions.

1. Start with one 16-foot length of black cord and two 4-foot lengths of tan cord.

2. Fold the black cord in half. You may find it easier to have something — a chin-up bar, ceiling pipe, whatever — to loosely tie this off to in order to keep from confusing which line is which. Or lay it out on the floor. Either way, you want the folded end on one side and the two loose ends on the other.

3. The left arm: Take one of the tan 4-foot sections and fold it so one end is about 8 inches longer than the other.

4. With the folded end of the tan cord, make a prussic knot about one foot from the folded end of the doubled-up black cords (shown right).

5. Run the longer of the two tan tails through the black loop that’s now been formed out of the prussic. Tie the tan ends together with a double fisherman. The prussic line and the end of the black line should form a single adjustable loop (shown left). You make the loop — now the arm of the trainer — longer or shorter by sliding the prussic knot up or down.

6. The right arm: Fold the remaining tan 4-foot section — this time in half. Tie it in a prussic about a foot up from the loose black ends.

7. Tie the tail of one black cord to the tail of one tan cord with a double fisherman. Do it again with the remaining two ends. As with the left arm, you should now have a single connected loop — now the right arm — that can be made longer or shorter by moving the prussic up or down the black line (shown right).

The handles

1. Start with two 5-foot lengths of 550 cord, two 4- to 5-inch lengths of PVC, the PVC insulation and duct tape.

2. Make sure the PVC ends are smooth, not jagged. Put the insulation over the PVC.

3. Take one piece of 550 cord and run it through a piece of PVC, then run it through again. Tie the two ends of cord with a double fisherman’s knot.

4. Slide the 550 cord around so the knot is inside the handle.

5. Wrap the handle with duct tape. Be sure to tape the two ends to help reduce the chance of fraying on the PVC.

6. Form a triangle with the cord and, using the handle as the base, tie an overhand loop at the top.

7. Put a carabiner into the loop.

8. Repeat for the second handle.

(What about foot loops? You don’t need no stinkin’ foot loops. Just use the handles. If you must have foot loops, run a pair of arm-sling cravats from a first-aid kit through the PVC.)

Put it together

All you need to do now is put it all together and you’re ready for your first workout.

1. Run the anchor line around something high and solid enough to hold your weight. Attach a carabiner to the end of your anchor. Then clip the arms into it around the midway point of the black lines.

2. Attach a handle to each arm with the carabiners and slide the prussics up or down to create the desired length.

3. Put some weight on the handles to test the lines, and make sure the prussics are holding tight and everything is connected properly.

What, you’re not working out yet?

Speed rope

It’s hard to get a better, faster cardio workout than with a speed rope. But a good one can cost $30 or more. Here’s how to make your own:

1. Start with some 550 cord, two 4- to 5-inch sections of PVC, four washers, one rubber band, some duct tape and 550 cord.

2. Measure rope: Generally, jump ropes are about 7 to 10 feet long. The better you are at wielding the whip, the shorter the rope can be. But a good rule is to use a rope that comes to your armpits when it’s doubled over. Whatever size you want, add an extra foot or so to account for the handles and a few knots. Remember: You can always trim later, but you can never add.

3. Run one end of the rope through one of the PVC tubes and then through a washer. Tie an overhand knot — if you don’t know this simple knot, form it the same way you would the overhand loop, with the prussic knot forming the top of the loop — as close as possible to the end the rope. Holding the washer and the knot together, pull out about a foot from the end of the PVC to give you some working room.

4. Making the handles: Here’s where it gets a little tricky, but you’ll appreciate the magic. The keys to a good speed rope are no kinking and smooth movement. That’s won or lost in the handles. Washers on both ends of each handle will ensure the rope rides free, but it’s almost impossible to crimp the knots down tight enough to keep those washers from flopping all over. Time to bring out the rubber band. Cut it in half.

5. Tie a big overhand knot at both ends with only about 2 inches in between. With the washer pushed all the way against its holding knot, begin an overhand knot in the 550 cord just on the other side of the washer, but don’t tighten it completely.

6. Stick one end of your rubber band through the cord knot so the rubber band knot is held snugly. Now begin another overhand knot in the cord about 3 inches down the line. Insert the rubber band knot into the cord knot and tighten down. Important: The space between the two cord knots needs to be longer than the space between the two rubber-band knots. Now pull it all inside the PVC.

7. Run a washer down the rope so it comes up to bookend the PVC. Here’s the magic: With the washer snug, gently pull your extra few inches of cord out through the washer, tie an overhand knot as close as you can get it, and then release the tension. Presto, the two washers should now be riding snugly — but not too tightly — against the PVC. Of course, if the rubber band breaks, you’ll lose that tension. So if you really want to get fancy, you could use a small spring, like the one in government-issued pens.

8. Repeat on the other side. This time, you’ll need to front-load the inside washer before running the rope through the PVC and end washer. You’ll also want to trim any extra length before you build the handle.

9. Wrap the PVC in duct tape to give the handles some grip, but make sure you keep the ends clear of any tape that might gum up your smooth-moving washers.

10. If you want to add some weight — and speed — to your jump rope, you can throw in some short lengths of plastic tubing, ideally just bigger than your cord. Cut them lengthwise, slide them over the rope and then duct-tape them shut. How many is entirely a matter of personal preference. Get similar results by making the little weights out of duct tape, like miniature versions of the sheath for the tension bands.

Resistance bands

You’ve seen them everywhere. From rank-and-file athletes to pro mixed martial artists, CrossFit fanatics and P90Xers, all have found a place for resistance bands in their workouts. But the bands can be pricey. Just one Exertube, made by SPRI, retails for $13.95. That company’s Ultratoner — great for everything from boxing drills to adding some extra heat to your push-ups — goes for $10.95. But if you want more or less resistance, you’ve got to buy more.

Not so with our system. About $18 at your local big box hardware store will buy you 10 feet of the same kind of surgical tubing used by companies like SPRI. Cut it into two or three pieces, tie a few knots and add our detachable handles from the suspension trainer and you have everything you need.

1. Start with the surgical latex tubing cut into three equal lengths of about 3¤ feet apiece, as well as some duct tape and 550 cord.

2. Make protective sheaths. These will up-armor your latex bands, helping to ward off nicks and cuts. Lay a 1-foot section of duct tape sticky-side up, and lay another 1-foot section carefully over it sticky-side down, leaving about an inch of sticky surface exposed along either side. Now roll the two exposed sticky sides together forming a duct tape tube. Repeat for each band you’re planning to make.

3. Thread the latex tubing through the duct tape tubing.

4. Fold one end of the latex tubing over about 6 to 7 inches and tie an overhand loop, making sure to leave about two inches of tail. Pull hard and tight. The extra tail provides an added layer of security against any slippage in the knot.

5. Make your handle connection points. This will be a doubled-over loop of 550 cord big enough to use as hand holds and also to connect the handles from your body-weight trainer. You can also use these to link multiple tubing lengths together for longer bands. Cut six 2-foot lengths of 550 cord. Double them through the tubing end loops (run the line through the loop once and then again) and tie the two ends together with a double fisherman. Repeat for all six ends.

Ultralight trainer

Remember, the “550” in 550 cord means it can support up to 550 pounds before snapping. While knots degrade tensile strength, that still leaves plenty of holding power for occasional light duty. Plus, this fully functional suspension trainer is compact enough to stuff in a pack of cigarettes.

1. Start with two 2-foot sections of tan 550 cord and one 15-foot section of black.

2. Fold one of the tan cords so that one side is about 6 inches longer than the other. Tie the folded end of the tan cord in a prussic knot around the black cord, about a foot from one end. The short end of the tan cord should be on the same side of the prussic as the tail of the black cord (shown at right). You could loop the prussic through three times (four hitches on the top and four on the bottom) for added friction.

3. With the prussic tight, tie the two ends of the tan line together using a simple overhand knot.

4. You don’t have to have handles, but if you have some hardened tubing, a large-caliber bullet casing or some other kind of handle that can move freely along the cord, add it now just under the overhand knot.

5. Tie the remaining black and tan ends together with a double fisherman.

6. Repeat on the other side with the remaining tan cord.

7. For your anchor, start with a 10-foot section of cord — longer if you think you’ll need it. Tie an overhand loop on one end, work your way down with butterflies and end with another overhand loop.