Surf legend Laird Hamilton’s underwater workout

Ever heard of XPT? It could be the perfect exercise regime for those looking to combine weight training with time in the pool.

XPT, Extreme Performance Training™, is a performance lifestyle rooted in the most basic yet powerful human trait: the ability to adapt.

This innovative workout challenges those who do it, like Hollywood actor Orlando Bloom and professional rugby player Danny Cipriani, with its specific “Breathe, Move, Recover” curriculum.

Designed by big wave surf legend Laird Hamilton and his wife, Gabrielle Reece, the program aims to stimulate growth in all aspects of human performance through exposure to a variety of natural elements and environments.

XPT’s train, adapt and perform approach empowers you to strengthen and elevate the quality of your everyday life.

The movement component of the XPT lifestyle encompasses gym workouts, exercising outdoors and getting active underwater.

“XPT Water is where all three pillars of XPT Breathe-Move-Recover syndicate to provide a unique workout environment,” according to the XPT website.

“The novelty of water training brings opportunity for immediate progress and a host of benefits such as improved fitness, recovery and mental resilience that transcends into a variety of alternative settings.”

On a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Experience, Gabrielle Reece explained the XPT pool training to the podcast host.

“There is a deep-water workout with weights and shallow water workouts. It’s ballistic, you can increase your strength and it isn’t too tough on your joints,” she said.

“You have to moderate your breath. You’re in compression. There are about 35 different exercises that we have come up with.”

The holistic lifestyle has as much focus on mental focus as it does on the physical fitness. The XPT performance director said one of the many pitfalls when it comes to mindset is that some people can quite easily just “go through the motions” during a workout.

“Our brain is always trying to preserve our energy reserves by creating predictable patterns and going on auto pilot when possible. That’s what happens when you drive home from work or pick up your kids from school without recalling anything about the journey,” he said.

“While it can be positive for certain things to become second nature and happen quasi-autonomously, we can also make a trap of routine to the point that ensnares us.

“This is the case when you come in and do three sets of 10 crunches, curls and lunges every time you hit the weight room, or always run a 5k at exactly the same pace.”

“This is one of the reasons that variety is a big part of what we do at XPT. The ‘move’ pillar of our philosophy involves pool training, gym sessions, training on natural surfaces like sand and grass, paddling in the ocean, and much more.”

He said the XPT philosophy is best thought of as a recognition that movement should be playful and that we should constantly be embracing new challenges in order to grow mentally, physically and spiritually.