Dopamineo Playlist To Help Get You Started

 

When you get an idea in your head and have something good going on, you might as well share it and see where it leads. For a while now in addition to my Dopa Band Workouts, I wanted to create a playlist on my YouTube to show some basic moves you can do with the Band. Some are a little more advanced and others are the basics with the volume turned up so do speak. 

These bands are insanely fun to use and the creativity you can get from them are limitless. It doesn't matter if you're a wrestler, MMA Fighter, Fitness Nut or a bad ass Olympic Champion; Dopa Bands create a unique way to build strength and conditioning that not only lasts but enhances your energy levels, the way you move and the way you can have a better quality of life. That's why I created the playlist to showcase what you can do at least on a simpler level. Exercises you can start with and build a foundation on. 

They're not just for building athleticism and fitness, they can be great for rehab/prehab, mobility training, flexibility, rotational work, loosening up muscles and a hell of a lot more. From time to time, I'll use them to loosen up my back and legs. My joints always feel amazing after training with them and because they're not time constricted, you can get in something great in as little as 5-10 minutes. If you wish to go longer, that's awesome, you get to decide what could work for you and take the amount of steps needed to get better and better. 

Now, one of the perks of getting a band is that once you learn some of the exercises that can get you started, you can access even more tutorials from the DopamineO company themselves that will send your fitness into the stratosphere. Get your hands on workouts and exercises from World & Olympic Champions, MMA Tournament Winners, College Wrestlers and other Pro Athletes that will showcase their explosiveness, strength, power, speed, reactions and more that made them some of the very best on the planet. I can give you samples of things that can get you going and have some fun with, but when you learn from the cream of the crop, you'll find out what you're capable of and harnessing a new level of cardio that is just unbelievable. 

One of my favorite exercises is the Squat & Row Combo which is very simple, take the band, Squat down, come back up and pull towards the rib cage. Nothing too complicated and works multiple muscle groups which can aid in conditioning training along with agility. I do this often in my own training doing either circuits or HIIT Workouts where I would do this for up to a minute or so with other exercises for a total of 15-30 minutes of a full workout. It's great as it can be used to train for wrestling working on the duck under and pulling your opponent in for the kill or it can be done to work on knee mobility and working the upper back muscles to build strength for rehabbing. There are so many things this exercise can do it's nuts yet it's so simple to do. 

With practice, a good work ethic and utilizing your imagination, these bands will benefit you in ways that I can't even fathom and who knows what you'll be able to do. You can take them anywhere, even to the gym to use for rest periods, warm ups, cooldowns, finishers or part of your routine. You can bring them to the park like you'll see with some of the exercises in this playlist. Take them down to the Lake and work on some stuff before going swimming like the Propeller for example. It is a great companion for at home training or to travel with. 

In this playlist there are more than a Dozen exercises at your disposal to get you started that range from working specific muscles to explosive training and combo moves. Grab a band today and start on the path to a new you and have a kick ass time. Don't forget to use my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order. You got this and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Why Dopamineo Bands Are Great For Those Over 40

 Getting older can suck at times depending on how you live but it doesn't mean you can't build a better quality of life after a certain age. Some people believe they peaked in high school, others in their 20's and 30's but very few (more than past generations at least) believe you stop at 40 and just live it out the rest of your life. One of the greatest legends and one of the last of the oldtime strongmen Slim The Hammerman once said he didn't even peak at 40. He said between his years of 40-50, he felt like he was invincible and dangerous. That's a bold statement considering what he put himself through day after day working as a back breaking stone cutter with a 16 lb hammer and on top of performing the heaviest sledgehammers that to this day almost nobody can match.

Athletes as they age do tend to wind down after years of hard training in certain sports but it doesn't mean they should stop living. We keep driving to be better, make adjustments if we have to but train to keep our quality of life going. We won't always be able to do the same things when we were younger but we can create new possibilities and keeping our joints healthy is one of those steps to making that happen.

I knew going into being 40 that there are things that won't value my style of training but I can create new possibilities and keep testing things out and as it turns out, I'm doing things I wasn't doing in my 30's. Never imagined training hard with a heavy 100+ lb sandbag at 40 or carrying a kettlebell for hundreds or even 1000 yards or more without putting it down. One of the best pieces of equipment I love using and have been using it off and on for a year now is the Dopamineo Band. At first it was to help heal a sciatica injury, than it became something to do for conditioning and now it's basically to not only condition my body but to help keep my joints and muscles healthy. You've seen some of the workouts I do with that thing and it hasn't slowed me down. 

The band is more than just a tool, it's a saver for those who are working around injuries, do drills in some format to keep up with what they did for wrestling or fighting back in the day or to maintain health and stamina after years on the field, the mat or whatever. It gives off that youthful feeling of having great energy, natural dopamine levels, better breathing and being more mobile. You can take it anywhere with you and use it as warm up, a finisher or as a stand alone in addition to your regular routine. It doesn't take long to do, you can get a killer workout in within 15-30 minutes and be spanked but in a good way. The cardio you get alone is often times better than just running on a treadmill, you can switch up exercises on a dime and never be bored. You can make it as tough or as easy as you want it and build a foundation for a better healthy body.

One of my favorite exercises is what's called the Chest Pull Wave or Creating Waves With A Pull In that works the arms, shoulders and back along with working the stability muscles in your core. It's a hell of an arm conditioner and with the intensity and pace to create waves consistently, it builds incredible stamina and lung power. Wrestlers do this as a finisher to keep up their conditioning or use as part of a post practice workout to make sure they have that extra boost for matches later on. From a fitness standpoint, it's a great way to build long term strength in the arms and build muscle in the core and back. 

Being active in your later years is essential to maintain healthy levels of hormones, heart & lungs, serotonin and brain function. Intense exercise adds a great element to being in that active state but it doesn't mean you go so hard that you're dying at the end. Always have gas in the tank and progress little by little. I love Circuit Training and working with 5 exercises or so for 10 rounds with little to no rest so I don't waste time. I want to be done with a workout as soon as possible and on some days I'll do DDP Yoga for longer periods of time so I can maintain flexibility but with Circuits, it is intense, hard and there's no safety zone or net to save you. 

One workout I did with the Dopa Band just a couple days ago or so, I did a HIIT type workout where I took 5 exercises for 1 minute on, 15 seconds off each and did that 4 times for a total of approx 25 min for the whole workout. It was brutal, sweating like crazy and felt a high that was amazing. Never did that level of intense training before and there were times where I wanted to quit but kept going. It's not an everyday thing but going that hard and still having some energy left is just beautiful man. That's one of the very best things about this style of Band Training, you can mimic just about any machine in the gym or work on drills for sparring to keep your stamina up or even use it in addition to your current routine and use it for rest periods between sets for your gym exercises. 

The sky is the limit, be creative and utilize simple techniques so you can get the most out of a workout. When you get a band, you can gain access to a variety of videos and tutorials to give you insights on how you can use the band to your advantage. The band is made for those in certain weight classes like in MMA so you can get the benefit of training with something meant just for you and your goals. Become more mobile, build strength that lasts and have the stamina of someone in their 20's. Workout at home, the park, in a hotel room, at the beach, on break at work, on vacation or wherever. Make it work for you.

As a token of my gratitude as you took the time to read this, if you're interested in purchasing a band or a bundle, I have a discount code you can use that saves you a few bucks or more off the regular price for them. At the checkout punch in the code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF. There's bands made for kids, there's bundles you can find for Group Classes, MMA Programs, High School/Youth/College Wrestling Programs, A Family Bundle for you, the wife and kids so you can all get fit together and more. Keep the quality of life alive and get the most out of your training so you can still do amazing things for many years to come. 

Have an amazingly awesome day and keep killing it. 

The Propeller Exercise From Dopamineo

 Always finding ways to train so I can get the most benefit out of a workout. Off and on with the Dopamineo Band, doing circuits and HIIT Workouts hits the spot in many ways to tackle my cardio, coordination, agility and explosiveness. One exercise in particular I held off on doing until recently was the Propeller exercise. I've seen several videos of people who own Dopamineo and other athletes do this exercise at various speeds and style and I figured it was time for me to learn it. 

The reason why I held off on it for a long time was because for one, it's a complex movement that hits muscles where I was having my sciatica and was afraid of getting hurt again because of the way the band moves and the way you have to move with it. The second reason was because I wanted to get good at some of the other exercises that were complex as well but not as difficult coordination wise. Once I felt I was good enough to where it felt automatic, I started putting effort into this crazy looking exercise.

The Propeller Exercise in itself is a workout just to not only get the movement right but it also hits many muscles and there's a reason many wrestlers use it to condition their bodies. It does like a Duck Under like move where you shift the body and can duck under an opponent for a takedown and/or utilize the Fireman Carry Technique. Take it slow to get an idea on how you unify the band and your body together to work in sync. Start speeding up little by little as you get better and before you know it, it makes you look like you're spinning. At a certain clip, it becomes quite the conditioning exercise and will get you breathing hard. 

Before I did a workout with it, I tested the waters and did what I could with it. It can be a bit of a brain teaser because there's many things coming into play with the arms, the shoulders, the slight squatting, the turning of the torso, working with the band instead of against it. Once I got going, it tested my breathing because of the intensity. You don't stretch the band to the point where you can barely move, you get it just long enough to where it creates resistance but also is in a "relaxed" type state yet not "loose". In the workout, I did a circuit of exercises of my usual 10 reps of 5 exercises and did this last. Did a total of 100 reps with the Propeller and out of all the exercises I did in that workout, that was the hardest one and the one that tested me the most. It is a fun exercise once you get the idea of the mechanics of it. It's not easy and I still need practice on it but it is getting better. 

In the video below, I took the band out on a windy day at a park behind a church down the block from the house. It took a few takes, not because of the wind or anything, I had a good set up with my phone and able to keep it steady with one of my bags, it was the movement itself along with angles, speed, not messing up smacking myself and doing reps to get the amount of time to show it for more than a few seconds, I really wanted to show the progress without making a blooper out of it. I hate messing up. After several takes and several minutes of doing the exercise, it turned into a mini workout cause it wore my ass out. This was the end result and like I said, it still needs work but in time, it's going to be a hell of an exercise to work with.

Some people do this movement with a twisting motion of the torso, some just twist the arms, I'm still figuring out which way to go on the up position at the end. It's all about experimenting and having fun. Don't forget to grab one yourself or for your athletes if you work with wrestlers, MMA Fighters, BJJ, Judo or other combat sports. These are also great for training and playing with Kids. There are bands for little ones as young as 4 years old. Great piece of equipment to get kids moving and playing. Play along with them to create bonding experiences. Get a cool discount when you punch in POWERANDMIGHT at checkout. 

Why Do Only 10 Rounds And 500 Reps???

 The majority of the time I do my Dopamineo Circuit Training, I do my best to complete 10 rounds of that circuit in the shortest time I can. With little to no rest other than marking off a set, I would cruise through it and focus mainly on technique and breathing. Rarely would ever go past 10 rounds like 12-15 just to add some zest or to test my conditioning. Why do I pick only ten rounds, why not go for 20 or 15 a lot of the time for that matter? When I used to do circuit work with bodyweight training, I worked into the system of Darebee's protocol to test myself. The idea is to reach 7 rounds and your rest between sets was 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Because some of those workouts were fairly easy to get through with little rest like under 30 seconds, I wanted to push myself a little further and do an extra 3 rounds to feel satisfied. It became my thing.

The total reps of my Dopa Workouts or Circuits comes out to 500 Reps these days. Why did I choose 500 specifically? It mainly has to do with the rep standard from doing Squats and Step Ups (which in most cases with the Step Ups). I figured, why do 500 of one exercise when you can add variety to multiple exercises and total it up? I'll still do 500 Step Ups within 20-25 minutes when I'm in the mood for it and ever since I healed up, I've done it a few times in succession. On a few occasions with the Dopa Band, I've gone up to 1000 total reps doing 5 Exercises for 20 reps each and do the 10 rounds that way. Those times are when I'm really ambitious and want to crank up my cardio. 

I enjoy these types of workouts because they don't take very long, they're effective in getting in solid conditioning and when you use the same equipment as some of the best wrestlers in the world from MMA to the Olympics, it gives you goosebumps. They're fun, you get to be creative and do the same drills or at least in a modified way that world class athletes do is feeling like you're a part of something and enjoying benefits that are pretty damn incredible. I know I can't do the same exact same style of training that these men and women do and it's not something I wish to pursue but it's inspiring and learning some of the exercises done in Freestyle & Greco-Roman along with amplifying your fitness to a level where you get to do other great things in life. 

I don't go as fast as I did before, this time around with the Band, I focus a lot more on technique and my breathing that I didn't do before because it was one of the factors of me getting hurt and not paying attention. It happens and it's my own damn fault. I was good and can really go but my awareness wasn't where it should've been and I focused too much on the timing and didn't pay attention to my body the way I needed to. It was a tough lesson and I paid a hefty price for it. My speed is still there but I stopped forcing it and although my cardio was good before, I find it's way better now because I pay attention to my breathing and relax more into the movements themselves. The more I let myself relax, the better it got and my movements are far more efficient then in previous workouts. The speed comes naturally and my technique is far better especially in certain exercises where you work with the hips and working movements that flow with you. 

I love doing my 10 Round & 500 Rep protocol type workouts, they work for me and I keep the exercises to a more basic level and work with variations that have me flowing throughout. The time I go through circuits is never the same and I don't worry about how fast I'm going anymore. The length of a workout ranges from 10-20 min in most cases, if I want to do more rounds on a certain day, it might go up to 25-30 minutes but I'm happy regardless. The goal is to consistently get 10 Rounds and 500 Reps total. 5 Exercises, 10 reps each and work with it. If I want to double the reps and go for 1000 total that day, cool but it's not a priority. The idea is to move with efficiency and working with technique, your coordination and what can be done with intensity in a good amount of time. 

Get yourself some bands and get a discount on top of your order on the house. Enter the code POWERANDMIGHT and get 10% OFF. Be amazingly awesome and have fun with these. Get the kids one so you all can train together.    

Hiking DDP Yoga And Dopamineo Conditioning

 Taking into account of what you can do on certain days or using the energy you have with using the time to do other things can be a bitch. However, we can do things in the capacity of how we utilize the discipline and the awareness of what is possible at the time. For busy beavers, micro workouts is always a great option, I do them myself often with the other things I do but some if that's the only option people have in their present state, use it to your advantage. 

Working with the DDP Yoga Program is not only giving me greater flexibility and durability, it has also given me great endurance that goes along with other methods I do. Some days I'll just do one workout from the program, other days I'll mix and match various workouts into one bigger workout like doing the Fat Burner & Energy workouts together or work with a 10 min warm up and then one of the hour long ones like Diamond Cutter. I even tried out the Extreme Psycho Workout for the first time in years and although that needed modifying big time, I did the best I could to get through it. Some of the push-ups from Extreme were pretty tough but hey it's all about learning right? DDP Yoga is definitely my go-to training system for now.

 Train to what you can handle and progress little by little. The Dopa Workouts are coming back more and more doing circuits of 10 rounds totaling 500 Reps within 15-20 min depending on what I do. One day this past week, I went a little further testing my conditioning by doing a Fat Burner DDP Yoga Workout and immediately going into a Dopa Workout. That was nasty but effective and the total time was just under an hour. I'm not doing the Dopa Band Training everyday like I used to which isn't a bad thing, I like to do other stuff and when I do, I go after it with a vengeance. I filmed some exercises one day day and then did a full workout, didn't time that one but I wasn't resting much either. 

There was a song back in the day by the Country Bear Jamboree called "Ain't nothing like the great outdoors" so I would take my Dopa Band with me to a park or in the video below, my backyard and just get after it, being in the sun and just having a good time. Can never get enough of this band. The other day, I did a HIIT Workout where I took 5 exercises and did them 3 times for 30 Seconds on, 15 Seconds off each for a total of about 11 minutes. Short, quick and effective as hell. 

Yesterday, me and the wife went on a Hike for the first time in a long time and this particular Hike we haven't done since we first met more than 9 years ago. It was out on the outskirts of Coeur D' Alene Lake called Mineral Ridge, the loop was roughly 2.5 miles long (the grand total of the entire trail is just over 3) so we did a good portion of it. At the top you get a beautiful view of the lake, might see some Bald Eagles or Hawks and just awesome scenery. With all the Step Ups, Squats and other leg work, this Hike felt great and I was wearing my new Bareway Shoes which surprisingly did a hell of a job holding up the rugged terrain. The narrow pathway made my ankles feel a little weird and awkward but it came out ok. It'll get you a bit with some of those steep climbs but that's all part of the fun right?

Make the most of what you can and train to do great things in life. Go on adventures, test yourself out with certain things and have the time of your life man. Get in awesome condition to do fun shit. Have an amazingly awesome day.  

Slowly Getting Back Into The Dopamineo Workouts

 Spending the majority of the time on DDP Yoga, I've also been getting back into working my neck more consistently and even thickened it up a bit along with developing greater mobility. That type of training is merely just standing and working the neck in different directions doing 10 reps each way. On the 10th rep, I would hold the position isometrically for a 10 count and move onto the next move. That has helped my spine a lot and its a great short workout before or after a DDP Yoga Session or as an addition to doing Joint Loosening Training.

Another thing that I've been anxious to get back into is the Dopamineo Workouts. Done a few of them so far and filmed doing some basic stuff at a park. I always enjoyed those workouts doing 15-30 minutes of a circuit. Most of the time I was hitting 10 rounds totaling 500 Reps but I also did workouts that went sometimes up to 12-15 rounds within a 30 min. period. Since my recovery however, I've had to either switch things up or slow the pace down and focus on technique which isn't a bad thing. Not trying to be a wrestler or a fighter in training, just keeping myself in shape and being aware of what I do. 

I love circuit training, to me it's one of the best forms of conditioning and keeping yourself going at a good clip while resting as little as possible. With these workouts now, it's more technique than speed. The intensity is still there but I'm not focusing on being so explosive, just enough to where I can keep going with a comfortable pace. Some workouts I won't time them because I don't need to beat the clock or set some kind of record all the time. Enjoying what I can do and have fun doing it while making little goals. 

The video I did was doing some basic moves that I'm getting back into at a park down the road from the house here, it's really no more than like 3-4 blocks if that. Set it up on a tree using my Iso Strap as an anchor and have at it. 

Some moves can be tricky to learn at first but with time and practice, they become like a flow, a sequence if you will of understanding the body's mechanics and mobility. The objective of the band isn't to stretch it so you can't really do much, it's to work just enough resistance so you can feel a movement without being stiff. It's about being smooth, in control and having technique as if you're drilling like in wrestling or martial arts. 

Although inspired by wrestling, it can be used for a lot of other things like swimming and doing road work on the beach or something. I love it for the fitness and cardio aspects of it. It's a great experience to do exercises that are different and formulate a program based on movements used by the most conditioned athletes on the planet. What's even cooler is that these same bands are now being used to train Olympic Athletes such as Freestyle & Greco-Roman Wrestlers and Judo Players. One female Freestyle Wrestler is officially the first to be a 3-time Olympian and part of her training was with this specific type of band. If someone who's dedicated to her sport can pull off an accomplishment like that, imagine the possibilities you can achieve in your own training whether it be for sport, fitness, group training or whatever. 

You can create all sorts of workouts with these bands and take them virtually anywhere. You can use them in a pool or in the ocean, take them to a park, hook it up at home or at the gym, in your hotel room, do a quick session during a break at work, take them on a hike and work them on a trail, in a parking lot or wherever. If you got a partner to train with, he/she can hold the band while you do drills and then switch. Do little games or work together in sequence, use them to challenge each other and whatever can work. 

Don't forget to use my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order. These are some of the most durable and flexible bands in the world. Some of the best athletes have trained so hard on these that it's a miracle the band hasn't snapped. They're so incredibly strong that Superman would have trouble snapping these. Grab a set for yourself and/or your friends, training partners, family members or students in group sessions. There's bands for kids to use to train for youth groups and to help them stay healthy and have fun with. These things are worth every penny.  

To Keep Going Until The End Of Time

 Certain aspects of training can be put into perspective when you look at it from a certain point of view. In most of my workouts with the Dopa Band, I set a stop watch and see how long it takes to do 10 rounds with the only break marking off the circuit. Sometimes it goes 13 minutes, at times 20 or more minutes but my intention is to always do 10 Rounds or more with little to no rest. It keeps me in shape and its great for rehab if it came down to it. Conditioning is an asset that many underestimate or don't know the true understanding of how useful it really is especially as we get older.

One of my favorite styles of training is to set a time and do a superset continuously until the timer is up. Just focus on the exercises, don't worry or rush the rounds or sets and just hammer out the reps as best as you can until your time is up. The objective is to not stop, adjusting is one thing because you may slow down a bit after a period or tune up the band so to speak as you keep going but you don't stop. That's a test of mental toughness and endurance. I tried this style yesterday doing 4 exercises with the dopa band for 30 min without stopping. No checking off or walking it off, I kept going at a clip that was comfortable for me to where I wasn't getting sloppy but I wasn't going Sonic The Hedgehog either. 

It's about doing what you can to keep your levels up and teaching your body to not get tired or have some gas left in the tank when you're done. It's not about pounding your body into an oblivion and being so damn sore you can't move the next day. Training for the most part is to progress with intent and being aware of what your body can do without needing to go to extremes. As time goes on, we adjust to what we can maintain for life long health. Having strength is never a bad thing but we don't just want our strength to be temporary, it's critical to have it last for as long as we can. 

Conditioning is a component of training we can't afford to lose. If you want to play with the kids, go on hikes, swimming, climbing flights of stairs without issues, taking a stroll through the park; conditioning needs and should be a part of all that in order to live a quality life. Use your energy when it calls for it, be able to keep going when others get tired, harness that gas in the tank mentality to do the fun things in life.

Keep being amazingly awesome. 

Dopamineo: Wrestlers & Fighters

 It's a fact that Wrestlers & Fighters are a different breed. In all fairness, they're some of the most conditioned athletes in the world, they do things in training that would make the average person puke their guts out. Personality wise, like anybody else there are assholes and good people in the sport but at the end of the day, you have to respect the craft and what they go through to be the best in their field. 

In my last article, I wrote that when it comes to the Dopamineo Bands, Wrestlers & Fighters use them as a post practice workout to amplify their conditioning. That's what separates them from good fighters to insanely tireless superhumans. It's already crazy enough that these athletes are practically superhuman as it is but to keep going after brutalizing their bodies on drills, sparring, calisthenics and weights to do an extra 15+ minutes with a band that can be deceiving looking but is an ass kicker is just unfathomable to comprehend. 

The Dopa Bands are based on the Russian method of using bands to enhance the drills in wrestling in order to perfect and continually train the muscles and reflexes to shoot quicker and have faster results in takedown technique, shadow wrestling, locking up and moving the opponent and other things. Today, the same concept applies but can also be used for other fitness related endeavors to help others get in shape in a short amount of time with watered down exercises and drills that anyone can work on. If its still done today, its incredible but one of the most time tested methods in wrestling to condition an athlete is to have a wrestler take on several other wrestlers one at a time for 5 minutes each for up to an hour or longer to get a feel for how each wrestler moves differently and changing up tactics in beating them. In India, this would go on for hours with various wrestlers. 

Can you imagine doing this method and then go and do a workout with the Dopa Bands, that's purely psychotic. Now you want to talk about a what if...When Kurt Angle did a session with the University Of Iowa, Coach Gable had his guys do just one match but the periods were 10x the usual amount in an official NCAA contest so instead of 3 min and then 2-2 min periods, they were 30, 20, & 20. If anybody knows the type of conditioning those guys did, you know they were the very best for a reason. Kurt's training for the Olympics is the stuff of legends. Now what if you added something like the Dopa Bands into the mix with a workout like that? This would kill somebody if they're not in shape and if you were in shape, you may still be afraid because training in this manner throws a lot of logical ideas out the window.

Karl Gotch has said that "Conditioning is your greatest hold" and it's true. Being in condition in any sport or in life can make a huge difference in how you win or lose. This is where the Dopa Bands are crucial because despite certain things you may see, they're extremely effective in how you train the body to be prepared for what life throws at you. They're tough as hell and workouts can be very intense even if its for 20 minutes, they'll have you testing your mental toughness and your physical abilities. I've written what kind of workouts I do and although they're basic exercises, they kick my ass which is what I want and test my cardio because I do do my best to not rest very much and be effective in whatever else I do when opportunities arise. 

Get your hands on these bands and get an idea of what wrestlers and fights use to make themselves the best possible. You don't have to be a wrestler to get the benefit from them, they can be done in a variety of ways; slow, fast, methodical and/or as intense as you want but at the same time it's important to respect these bands and use them to your advantage in your fitness journey. Get the right band for you and make the most of it, learning the exercises in the video library when you order or learn some on Youtube to get an idea of what you're getting into. Get 10% OFF your order when you use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT at checkout. Be amazingly awesome and stay healthy.    

Keeping Up With The Basics With Dopa Band

Workouts are short but they get the job done. Whether it be circuits are HIIT style training, the Dopa Band is a hell of a piece of equipment that any athlete would love to have in his arsenal. Although there are advanced movements especially if you're an aspiring wrestler or fighter, sticking to the basics always works best. Some of these guys mimic drills in wrestling practice to embed the skill sets into their brains for fights or matches on the mat whether it be for Division 1 Tournaments, World Level or Olympic Level. 

The basics however seem to create more of a stride and keep your conditioning in tact while also keeping the joints healthy. Some of the exercises are as follows....

Chest Press

Rows

Alternating Side Pulls

Squats

Lunges

Curls

Overhead Triceps Extensions

Ski Jumps

Jumping Jacks

Waves (Two-Handed or Alternating)

Sprints

That's more than enough for most people and you can switch them up and use them however you see fit. There are youtube videos that demonstrate all of these and more which give you an idea on how simple yet challenging you can make them. You can do certain combinations of them like a 2 in 1 type movement for example the Chest Press & Squat combo that works both the upper and lower body so you don't have to sets and reps of one or the other. 

I prefer to keep the reps at a minimum of 10-20 reps in a circuit of 5-6 exercises and time myself to see how fast I can get 10 rounds in, depending on the adjustment and focusing on the right order and not skip one or the other accidently because at times you get so into it that your mind goes to a different place. I also focus on keeping form at best as possible because if you're sloppy, the band will let you know about it and it won't be pleasant so keep at a pace where you can keep going but you're in control the whole time, never let the band control you.

The basics are always ideal and they're the backbone for your conditioning, coordination, speed and durability. You can do HIIT type training, I've done it a time or two keeping at a clip of a few rounds of an exercise for 30 on, 15 off. Just a few exercises with that protocol and you can get in a great workout that can be really intense for 15-20 minutes and then be spent.

The mere fact that top wrestlers use these bands at a very high level AFTER their practice, not before or during and those wrestling workouts are some of the craziest in the world. Imagine how insane you'd have to be to go that hard and then work with a band for an extra 15-20 minutes. You're looking at superhuman athletes with a hint of cookoo for coco puffs in order to become the very best. To the average person looking in on that, you would hurt just by looking but if you took that mentality and just put it towards the bands not the wrestling practices, you may understand the idea to get in awesome shape in the shortest amount of time. 

Just working the bands alone can be tough, so learn how to wisely utilize your fitness level to how you work the bands. Some days for me they're fairly easy to get through depending on how I'm feeling that day but other days, it's so intense that I don't even know how I pulled it off. That doesn't mean they're a chore and you HAVE to go so hard, just playing with them and getting into a rhythm can feel easy yet look like you're killing yourself to an outsider. 

Grab a band or a set of bands for you and friends/family who love to work out and have fun with them. There are special deals you can find at Dopamineo that have family bundles, bands for kids, team bundles, bands for female athletes, groups in mma schools or personal training and more. As a bonus, no matter what deal you find, you can get an extra 10% OFF of that when you use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT. Even right now, even with my discount, you can get a deal on getting 2 extra bands and a carry bag for FREE. Be amazingly awesome and keep up with your journey and hit your goals with a vengeance. 

I'll Always Have Family

 How many times have we heard that in the Fast & The Furious Franchise? Probably more times than we care to count. But nonetheless, it is a good notion to have in your mindset. You don't always have to be related to someone to consider family, it could a best friend or a great group of people in your life. If you happen to be related, it can be a toss up to being a bonus or not depending on how you grew up or and were around. 

Family is important after all, especially if you want to set an example for kids whether they're your own or grandkids, nieces/nephews, much younger cousins or whatever. Having good habits especially when it comes to fitness and health goes a long way. Training is not always about looking good, as a matter of fact, looking good in most cases is secondary in comparison to being in shape for the things that really matter. From being able to play with the kids, to having fun with your wife/husband in your later years along with making the most of what's possible to be in good condition for those tough days and using exercise as an outlet for getting shit out of your system.

One of the great things about the Dopamineo Bands is that they're not just for adults, but for young kids as well, especially when they have all that energy to burn and not getting them hopped up on soda and candy. If you got a kid that is into sports or needs a good program to use that energy as an outlet, the bands can be extremely beneficial. When you workout as a family, it can build strong bonds and encouraging each other with friendly competition or being together and doing something productive, hands on and build healthy relationships. 

Dad's struggle at times to be in shape because in a lot of cases, they work hard and do what they can to make a living supporting their family. The bands can be a great system for dads because when they can stay in shape, they have that energy to be with with the wife or husband and their kids and keep up with demands. For moms, whether they're a stay at home type or a career woman or whatever, the bands can have a profound impact on their health and well being along with being able to have that drive and strength to tackle many obstacles they face in their lives. 

Training using the bands can also be a tribute to building mental health and strength because having a family isn't easy and you always want the best for those little ones to become strong and resilient as they grow. Fitness is about coming together and making choices that affect everyone later on or even now. Grab the Family Bundle at Dopamineo to kickstart the habit of training together to grow together. At a 15% Discount, you get the Fly, Feather, Light & Stretch bands. Want to save even more? Add in my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT to get an extra 10% OFF; that's a huge 25% Discount for your family to start training and getting into the habit. If dad is a little bigger than the light bands, you can grab a PAIR of the middle and heavy bands if needed. You have options for you and your loved ones to get in awesome shape together and being a team to develop healthy bodies and minds. You can always create a bundle here as well to grab what you need.

Invest in yourself and your family, be a part of the journey that builds strong individuals and groups of people together. We all deserve to be in peak physical condition and have great mental health. This is one way to help you get there. 

Conditioning Circuits With Dopa Bands

Circuit Training has been one of my go to methods for developing a good level of conditioning and maintaining my strength that lasts. Due to the workouts I've done with Darebee's Style of training with Bodyweight, it inspired me to work on that style with the Dopamineo Band. 

In most cases with those workouts, I would pick 5-8 exercises with the Band and see what is possible to do within an amount of time. Now, I may not move as fast with the Band as opposed to bodyweight training because with bodyweight, you don't have to adjust as much and jump in from one exercise to the next just by footing or hand placement or positioning pretty quickly, with the Band however, it can be a bit tricky and the exercise change can be either quick or you have to adjust things a bit slower so the timing might vary. 

My goal however has always been to hit 10 Rounds with any circuit I do because that's just the number I want to accomplish, some will hit 5, others beyond 10 and whatever number they want to achieve but 10 for me is the cutoff point. I also try to keep it within 30 minutes or less. Depending on the adjustment and positioning of my body with the Band, sometimes the workout will go over 30 minutes but as long as my rest is minimal and I can keep going, I'm all good. Regardless, doing circuits with Dopa Bands in my opinion is one of the best fitness methods you can do. You don't need to do tons of reps per exercise, just a bare minimum but you keep going and with little rest, you're actually developing a great level of cardio that means something. 

Keeping to the basic exercises is ideal. If you're more advanced, you can do harder exercises if you wish but the rep count may be a bit less than the basics unless you're training for competition or training to enhance your status with your group. The main point is to not let your ego get the best of you, keep your objective to train at a level where you can come out of it with gas left in the tank than to crawl on your hands and knees just begging the universe to kill you. My main goal with my 10 rounds of work is to be efficient as much as possible, work at a speed that is comfortable to me where my form isn't compromised and to only rest by marking off the circuit and keep going with that until the 10 rounds are done because I never want to be tired or slow down so much that I have to reduce my speed by a big margin. You want to be able to go at a pace that keeps the heart rate going but you're not slowing down or getting sloppy by the end. 

Here's a workout I did yesterday that was not difficult but it wasn't easy either. The reps may not sound like much but when you're cruising through and the speed is pretty hefty, it becomes more than it seems....

Conditioning Circuit

10 Rows

10 Curls

10 Chest Presses

10 Uppercuts

10 Tricep Kickbacks

10 Squats

10 Side Shoulder Pulls

This took just over 25 minutes to complete 10 Rounds. It felt great, I had a hell of a heart rate going and the speed was just right. The first round was tricky because I was adjusting to the pace of the exercises but once I got the rhythm, it just went really smoothly. The great thing about circuits is that you can get a lot done in a short amount of time along with building your level of conditioning, agility, mobility and other attributes rather quickly. The other great thing is that you can do the same exercises but change the workout from a circuit to an HIIT type workout where you set a time for the work and then rest for each exercise. My style lately has been to do exercises at a clip of 30 seconds on, 15 seconds off for 4 rounds which roughly hits around 3 minutes per exercise. If you were to do a total of 5-6 exercises, you can do a full workout within under 15-20 minutes that will develop lasting strength, cardio and speed efficiency.

You don't have to go so hard that you can't do another circuit and there's no point in trying to match workouts with the wrestlers and fighters that do these. The crazy thing is, they do circuits like this after their practice when they're already fatigued and pushed themselves. That's a whole other level of mental and physical conditioning. Imagine doing 2 hours or more of drills, sparring for god knows how long and going over technique over and over until it's planted into your brain, not to mention warm ups that would be a full workout to the average and then doing a circuit after all that. You'd be a fool to try to keep up with that. That's world class level and that is to be respected.

Keep it to a level of fitness that keeps you healthy and at a level that works for you. Don't try to keep up with anybody else, follow your own path and train effectively along with reducing injuries. Stay amazingly awesome and keep at it. Don't forget to use my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order and get some of the most durable, flexible and strongest bands on the market today. Train practically anywhere and you can customize your order to suit your programs of Youth Groups, MMA Training, College Wrestling, High School Programs, Olympic Training, World Championships, Upcoming Fights, Boxing Conditioning Programs and more.   

The Uppercut To Squat Exercise

 One of those exercise combos that comes along that is interesting and tricky at first to try out can become a great move to add to the arsenal. You don't need to do a ton of them to get the benefits but just to practice it and learn the mechanics has perks in itself. One of them is the Uppercut To Squat Combo using the Dopamineo Band.

When I first learned this move, it wasn't easy to pick up on and the coordination with the movement of the arms and the band working with you can be stingy but I wanted to learn it since it's one of the staple movements with that system of exercise and physical fitness. I've seen wrestlers, Judo players and boxers do it and the effortlessness is unbelievable. For wrestlers, it's to utilize a blocking technique or part of pummeling which is a basic practice for wrestling drills. 

The way to do it is to uppercut the arms like in boxing but at the same time, coordinate to underhook the band so it lands on the triceps and going around the armpit area. Weird I know but if you start slow with the pull and then up and over with the elbows, it can rub on the body but you get used to it to the point where with speed and technique, you'll barely even feel it. Add in the Squat and you got yourself a hell of a conditioning exercise.

After getting used to it, I did a couple workouts where I added it in and either did 100 total reps or utilize a 30 seconds on, 15 seconds off for 4 rounds protocol I use for other exercises to work on my stamina. It's a pretty fun move once you get the hang of it. The objective isn't to stretch the band out to its peak and do it, that's not the point of the exercise to formulate strength and to use ego to see how strong you are with the band, it's about explosiveness, coordination and relaxing the move itself without making the band so loose that you can't do anything with it. The real objective is to pull enough to keep it firm but not to have it so tight that you can't wrap the arms around effectively. With the squat, that's just part of the process with a basic outlook.

Those that practice it for drills are incredibly fast and just explosive with such power that it gives you an idea not to fuck with athletes of this caliber. You can learn more about the exercise from the guys at Dopamineo and on their instagram there are tons of clips. Below is a video I made, demoing my best version of it. It's a hell of an exercise and doing it enough times in a row will get your heart rate up and work you like crazy. Doing 10 is a good start, once you start hitting 25 or more gearing up to triple digits either in a row or total, you got a great workout. 

Don't forget to put in my discount code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order of these bands. Get one for yourself and/or friends, family. There are extra discounts when you create a custom bundle that would be great for those who want to train athletes in MMA Schools, Youth Programs, Group Classes, Wrestling Practice, BJJ Drilling, Boxing Techniques, Conditioning For Competition and all sorts of stuff. There are bands that work well for young kids too as young as 6 years old. Kick ass and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Why Do I Focus A Lot On Conditioning?

 In a nutshell, being in condition is not just about challenging my body's abilities to take on some crazy workouts or finding a way to enhance my muscular and cardiovascular endurance, it's about lasting in the things that are important in my life. I want to utilize that energy to be active, to make a lasting impression on myself by taking what works and understanding what I need to do in other endeavors. Being in shape is being able to shovel snow in the winter and not get winded or tired during, to be explosive at any given moment whether it's working out or playing with friends, it's to keep up with kids younger than me playing ball or hanging out with buds and their kids, it's to keep up with the physicality when you're needed.

For all intents and purposes, my idea of training these days is to be ready for whatever lies ahead. It's not always easy, it's not meant to be but when you have certain things going on in your life that sometimes have a life of their own, it's important to be in the best shape you can. I'm not in competition with anyone or trying to be some extremist with a compulsion to train so damn hard all the time that my body wears down, sure it's ok to back off every now and then in order to regain yourself but take into consideration  on what is the reason to be in shape. 

I do a lot of step ups, micro workouts, band training, isometrics and training with sandbags but that's all part of the puzzle to piece together your ultimate goal and that is to have strength that lasts and has meaning beyond just exercise. It's one of the reasons why I love training with the Dopamineo Band, it challenges me but doesn't put me into a state where I need to recover for days on end or make me so damn sore that I can't do anything else. It gives me the type of conditioning I can continue to use when it counts. There are so many exercises you can do that despite all the exercises displayed on Dopa's Website, there are many many more that can be created to enhance your chances of developing a level of fitness very few achieve. It is inspired by wrestlers and fighters but it's also a workout enhancer to harness that level of human abilities that is unique. Wrestlers from all styles have used similar bands for decades especially in Russia but in this day and age we don't have to be so hardcore like those guys in order to better ourselves. 

I've always believed training is about self-discovery and creativity to take your fitness to levels that are unbelievable. Being in condition is not about looking pretty or just strong, it's about lasting when it counts the most, to fight and not get winded. There's a funny trend on tik tok where women who train have this voice over which is a very stereotypical Russian accent that says "I don't want to be strong like man who look pretty, I want to be strong like bitch that fight bears in the forest." That's an example of being in condition, it goes beyond the idea of trying to seem like you have this particular look as if you're fit by outer appearance when in reality, if you can barely stand and hyperventilating after a few seconds, your outer appearance isn't jack shit. You need to be able to handle things that are important and last as long as needed. 

There are many reasons to be in real world shape yet only a few have true meaning, that's what you need to figure out because I can't just generalize what the important factors are, we're all different with different reasons to do things. My reasons for being in condition is to be able to go on hikes without tiring, shovel snow without wanting to keel over, to be there for my family, to protect who I love, play ball, to keep up with nieces, nephews and cousins who like to wrestle, chop wood so a fire can be made while camping, swim and have the energy of a person i their late teens and 20's as much as possible. Just some I can come up with.

Conditioning is not just for sport, it's to maintain things in life and being ready on command. It's to keep up with what you do in everyday life and to factor in what is possible for you to do. 

Take a gander at the Dopamineo Bands and see what is possible to enhance your fitness, health and condition. There are over 300 Exercises and dozens of workouts to choose from as a bonus with your purchase. Grab some bands for your martial arts school, wrestling room, group classes and/or sports conditioning program for your athletes by going to the Custom Order Area. I'll even throw in my discount code so you can save some bucks instead of whole price by entering POWERANDMIGHT at checkout to get 10% OFF your order. Keep being amazingly awesome and be in the best condition for your life and to inspire others.  

Happy New Year 2024

 A new year has begun and things will change but will you adapt to the change or come up with something that will be an excuse not to change? This is the time to take your world by storm by taking small steps leading up to large footprints in your journey. 

Resolutions suck, period. Instead, set goals to create a new and better version of yourself. Learn new exercises, test out workouts you've never done before and be aware of what you strive to become. For me, it's to be in even better shape than the year before because not only do I want to get better, I want be better by the time my birthday rolls around in which I will turn 40. Make the workouts count and keep them alive by making them interesting. 

Things are constantly moving, always in motion is the future as Yoda would say. Training is no different, you train your body in various ways but you're always finding a way to do them. Fitness is not always about looking good, that's merely secondary, it really is about self discovery and creativity. There will be days where you won't have the energy to do all the things you want to accomplish so you do what you can. Do micro workouts, don't push so hard that you end up hardly able to move the next day and find your balance to achieve your goals.

Not going to reveal what my actual goals are but I do want to get better at certain methods like Dopa Band Training and be a bit more consistent with Isometric Training. Be able to play with movements that don't take up a ton of time and write a bit more often. That's the idea for the moment. The Dopa Band will be one of my go to systems of exercise where I can develop my conditioning while maintaining muscle and it can go with me anywhere I can hook it up. Although it's a mainstay for wrestlers, football players, MMA Fighters and other forms of athletics, this thing took me to places in my training that I haven't had in previous years. The only limit is the imagination. 

Look to the horizon when you go for the goals you want to achieve, it won't be easy and sure as hell won't happen overnight but taking small steps and being progressive and adaptable, you'll achieve things this year you didn't think were possible. I believe that for you. Make things happen and do the best to your abilities to create what you want for yourself and those around you. 

Happy New Year everyone and make this one the best yet because life is too damn short to waste what isn't worth doing. Get your hands on some of the best bands on the market today and achieve levels of fitness that aren't the norm and developing a conditioned body that lasts. Get 10% OFF your order when you punch in the Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT. No harm saving a little to achieve something massive. Be amazingly awesome and continue to grow. 

2 For 1 Sprint Training With The Dopa Band

 Always experimenting and finding exciting ways to train, I wanted to give something a go that would put that extra spring in the step and give off nasty fat burning vibes. Last night after a fun date night of Red Lobster and seeing The Iron Claw (great movie BTW, might write a review on the next post) I got in some at home Sprint Training to shed off some of the Holiday Feasting this past weekend and start creating new goals early for the coming year. 

Tying myself to the Dopa Band, I wanted to try something new (at least to me) and really tackle some Explosive Conditioning by doing a Superset of Bear Crawl & Bipedal Sprinting. The idea is to do a Bear Crawl Sprint, walk back and do a regular sprint. The two different sprints is the equivalent to 1 rep and you repeat it as many times as you can, in this case I did 5 Reps per set. Totaled 6 sets of 5 Reps for a total of 30 or 60 Sprints all together. 

This actually felt really good and somehow didn't feel I overdid anything and still had gas in the tank at the end. You may not get very far because of the band but when you explode out and keep doing it for a short period of time, it can be a bit crazy. Sprint Training is not always done out on a track, hill or grassy area, you can do them at home doing modified versions that can still give you a run for your money (pun intended). It is always good however to get Sprints going outside whenever possible 2-3x a week but if you want to kick your ass at home, you have that option as well. I believe it's a great option because when you're done, the shower is within feet of you, you don't have to drive anywhere, you can get it done within minutes and take a nap or rest on the couch and put on a movie or something right there. For some that sounds lazy but if I can get a workout in and then have things I need right there afterwards, why the hell not?

This doesn't mean your home is the only option to do this, you can do this workout at a park, in your hotel room, at the beach or wherever you can hook the band up (safely and efficiently). Being outside is ideal and training in an area where you breathe fresh air and have a good time while focusing on your goals is always important. That's the beauty of this thing, it can withstand quite a bit because of its flexibility and durability along with being very difficult to break. What are the benefits of this workout: It gets you in rugged shape fast with consistency, it develops a great level of explosiveness, mental toughness, takes only minutes to complete, gives you greater options and places to train, can be modified to your level of fitness, could help reduce injuries, enhance HGH levels, produces spikes in Testosterone, burns fat like crazy and hell of a calorie burner. 

Sprint Training is a favorite of mine and when it's warm out, I would hit the hill or the field by the house. Winter isn't always ideal although it does build a different level of toughness but at the same time, it can be slippery out there and you could be asking for a disaster if you're sprinting hard and hit some ice that is slicker than cooking oil. This also could be useful for those who've had previous injuries and helping you with your posture for regular sprinting. For me, it reduces certain acts of pain in my shin and ankles. When I do Sprint on a hill, it can be discomforting to the point of slight pain because of the rod and pins in my legs so I do have to be careful with that but with the band, it lessens those things and I can go hard without feeling any discomfort or pain. I have a small threshold for pain but when it becomes too much, I can't be at my best. So if you need to modify, do so but don't let it get to a point where you can potentially end up in the ER or worse. 

This also can be done for people who are new to Sprint Training and get a feel of what's possible so when they are going out and hitting a hill or track, they have some of the mechanics embedded into their brain. It's still important to know the basics and mechanics of sprinting with or without using a band because although there are similarities, some techniques are different so learn the proper techniques to get the most out of it. Overall, it's a great workout to test yourself on and only has to be done no more than 3x a week, 2x a week is great for most people but if you're ambitious than do it 3x a week. 

Have fun and get those legs cooking man. Be amazingly awesome. Get 10% OFF the Dopa Bands by punching in the Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT when you checkout. Grab one for yourself or create your own custom bundle.  

Workout System With Dopa Band That Promotes Heavy Conditioning

I do my best to keep my workouts to a minimum for maximum results that I can produce. Never waste time doing things just for saying you did something. I want to accomplish the best workout I can to get in better shape little by little each time. When your life can be a whirlwind at times and the people in your life depend on you, it's important to take the time to make an effort on your training so you can be strong and fit for those that need you. 

Experimenting with the Dopa Band has been wonders and testing out workouts has been awesome. One of the things I've come up with to get the most out of my workouts lately with the Band is to do interval training by going for a good period of time while resting only half the amount. This has led to doing a 30/15 For 4 Protocol that I enjoy doing because I can go hard, rest half the time and get in a few rounds per exercise to get whatever I need done. The idea is to work an exercise for 30 seconds, rest for 15 and repeat for a total of 4 rounds. Pick up to maybe no more than 6 exercises (you can do more if you want but the point is to be efficient and getting a workout in within 20 minutes or less) and do what you can with them. 

The most common exercises I would do are rows, chest presses (sometimes adding a squat to make it a combo), waves, sprints and lunges but also at times I'll throw in Bear Crawls, Duck Walks and shooting drills like in wrestling to really tackle the lungs. I'll even throw in the Sandbell doing a Clean & Press or a Slam by combining either a sprint or Bear Crawl to it. Doing this type of training a couple times a week will be more than enough, hell you're working more than resting and testing the limits of your body's abilities. Be sure to recover well between workouts and maintain a good level of mobility and flexibility training. This can feel like hell and it's very intense. 

I've done a few workouts with this protocol, even doing one after "warming up" with a Deck Of Cards Animal Workout that takes me roughly 16 min to complete. Do the deck, take a few breaths and went into the Dopa Workout with a vengeance. Went hard but not to push to the limit of a possible injury, you're not trying to break records here. I've only done that the one time and I wanted to sleep it off afterwards, the endorphin high was crazy. I rested as little as possible between exercises of the Dopa Workout only to mark off a set or putting tying the band around my waist. The most rest I would take is around a minute or so. 

I'm no wrestler or even a world-class athlete but I do admire the training these guys go through and want to test myself to see what I can do. I never thought I'd be doing this type of training in my late 30's going into my 40's, if I was able to do these back in high school or in my 20's, who knows what kind of shape I'd be in but certain things have led you on a path to this point and I'm able to train at a level most people in my age group think is fucking nuts. It's heart breaking seeing people my age or younger dying because of the dumb shit they put themselves through or what they put in their bodies to create this illusion of health at a rate that's scary to think about. All I care about is doing the best I can while lessening the amount of injuries. We can't 100% avoid an injury but we can reduce the chances by doing things in a smart way while challenging ourselves. The band has done wonders for me and I love what it can do to make workouts more interesting and taking less time to train for maximum results. 

Get one yourself or a bundle deal for friends, family, group classes, youth groups, wrestling/MMA school or whatever and take in the benefits of being able to train with top quality equipment that you can carry in a bag. Use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order. Train hard, train with intent and kick ass in whatever sport or fitness endeavor you're in. We all deserve to be in great shape. Be amazingly awesome. 

A Dopamineo Band Analysis

 

With the recent articles on these bad ass bands, let's take a look as to why they're top quality and the differences between these and other resistance bands on the market with my own spin on things and the research through trial and error.....

Right now there's about 5 different types of Bands on the market at the moment and all have their unique qualities and styles that are useful. Because of the variety, the choice to pick one isn't always easy and it can be confusing as to what to choose from. Most of my career in fitness when it comes to bands has been from Lifeline and I will always cherish those especially with what they've done to keep me in shape in all these years. That doesn't mean I'm now exclusive to them. Because of the Dopa Band recently, it has given me a new perspective on resistance band training and the type of training that keeps me fresh and interested.

I want to give you a hand in how to find not only the type of band for you but to give you tips and compare notes to these bands and the others. Some bands are traditional tubing, loop and power type bands (such as the lifeline format, X3 and others). These mostly target the muscle groups with workouts normally associated with gym type training where you can mimic almost any exercise in the gym just about about anywhere you want. With that said, in comparison to Dopa Training, although different, there's some lack in versatility with other bands. This band targets everything and can create any workout you want without needing different bands to choose from. You can of course but variety is more packed into the Dopa Bands than other bands that I've even used.

The material in the Dopa Band is a bit different than other bands, these are laced with silicone and pack a wild punch with their durability and lasting effects as you train with them. I've had the lifeline bands snap on me a time or two and it doesn't feel good trust me unless you got some S&M thing going on. With the Dopa Band, you can stretch it pretty damn long and its flexibility and time tested strength is just unbelievable. There's a podcast on Dopamineo's Youtube channel where wrestlers and other athletes test guests on the Blue Short Band (which is mainly used for stretching purposes) to see if they can snap this freaking thing. These men and women are freakishly strong and as far as I know, no one has been able to snap the band. Even shorter ones that are more likely to snap are still almost impossible to break. That's how crazy strong these bands are. Hell, I've even tested this and I can't do it and I've done some nutty strength feats. 

Now when it comes to cost effectiveness, I've always looked to saving a buck or two which isn't a bad thing but when bands snap on you and you have to replace them after a while, it can get steep depending on the type of bands you get but with the Dopa Band, the chances of it snapping especially if you use certain things to keep it flexible and strong are so freakishly slim it's jaw dropping. Some of the best wrestlers in the world use these frequently in their training and do all sorts of exercises and hook ups that should make it snap within months if not weeks like with other bands yet they don't. It's just awesome how bad ass these bands can take a beating. In the long run, the Dopa Band is more cost effective than even the lifeline bands I use. I can relax a bit and not worry about this band breaking on me as opposed to being cautious about using something like the TNT Cables or the Chest Expander, they're great in and of themselves no question and have used them for years but I always had to be extra careful to stretch them to the limits that is only just enough otherwise, I get a stinger in the arm, chest or leg. 

When it comes to providing videos, you would have to find videos for specific bands which isn't all that hard to find or figure out or buy specific videos either digitally or on DVD for that particular band like say videos for the X3 or the Chest Expanders. With the Dopa Band, you're given just about 300 Workout Videos and Exercises that provide every muscle group imaginable with just the one band. In comparison even coming from me, there's no contest in that. You can find lower body, upper body, core, flexibility, strength, endurance, conditioning and sports specific training all in one shot with this band. I can do quite a bit with the TNT Cables and Chest Expander but you can't utilize wrestling drills, jumping jacks, sprints, crawling, sprawling, kick throughs, jumping exercises or battle rope type exercises with them. That's just the tip of the iceberg with the Dopa Band. With that in mind, the Dopa band is that versatile and can give you a complete workout just about anywhere, if you used additional bands like the ones I just mentioned, you've got an arsenal that can give you a crazy strong and powerful physique, the type of conditioning that makes others' jaws drop and have a wealth of knowledge of exercises very few can possess. 

If you go with cheaper bands, that's awesome but either by itself or as an addition, the Dopa Band will take you to places in your training you didn't think existed and put not only a new stamp on the realistic functional training but have the opportunity to train (even moderately) what some of the greatest athletes in the world use to keep themselves healthy, in peak condition and developing a physique that can just as go as it does look good. I still use my other bands which I love and adding the Dopa Band is the cherry on top of the most bad ass cake you can imagine. If you think that was enough, I've got a cool Discount for you when you make an order, get 10% OFF  when you punch in POWERANDMIGHT at the checkout (which can also deduct price with discount bundles as well). These are the highest quality I've ever come across and I don't regret one bit getting this, it has been a game changer and it has helped me get in better shape than in the last few months with the already good shape I'm in. 

Be amazingly awesome and train with the best guys. It doesn't disappoint.    

Amount Of Time On The Dopa Band For A Workout

 I was curious about this myself when I first got the Dopamineo Band. I was looking at the workouts on their membership site and seeing how long these guys go. For the most part, the wrestlers and MMA men and women train on it either before or after practices to get that extra oomph in their arsenal. It works apparently cause come on, these people are champions both in world and Olympic competition. 

The workouts from what I've seen don't go for more than 20 minutes which is pretty standard in some of today's training styles without the need for a gym. Some are are 5-7 minutes of pure wrestling technique and explosiveness, others are around 15 minutes focusing more on muscle building and speed. Some workouts focus on sports oriented movements beyond MMA such as Football and maybe Soccer so there are other options but how much time do you really need to spend on this thing? The truth is, it's an individual thing. 

The longest workout I've done with it was just under 45 minutes mixing the band with step ups and managed 500 total reps of upper body movement and 800 step ups. The shortest was roughly 5 minutes doing the Bear Crawl Sprint Workout of 10 on/20 off for 10 rounds. Just yesterday I did a workout at the park that lasted 15:30 (nearly 25 min if you count a "warm up") doing 4 exercises at 30 on/30 off for 4 rounds each. That's a hell of a workout especially since it was on a nice warm day and got a little sweat going. 

Depending on your goals and what you're striving for, you can work with this long as you as you like and the only limit really is your imagination. There are so many exercises you can do that doing the same workout twice is few and far between. My main purpose is to build my conditioning and mobility, the way it's changing my body is just part of the process and I love what it's doing to my physique. The results speak for themselves and it's a lot of fun to do. Although this type of Band training is not new, it's not necessarily the type for just fitness training either and that is partially a new concept because for god knows how long bands have been used for Combat Sports, you don't always find it as a regular normal workout tool either. It's based on training from world class athletes that are the toughest and most conditioned in the world and some may feel intimidated by that. You don't expect a typical gym rat on these things.

Training with the Band is actually very useful because it's meant to simulate grappling and learning how to handle yourself. The Band itself is a coach and it tells if you're not doing something right because if your positioning is off or you're not locked in and stable, you're not going to get much done that is efficient so it takes practice to work your stabilizers, your footing, your arm movement, the speed and power that comes into play and the strength to manage certain aspects of resistance that will fight you. It's not meant to make you use so much strength that you can't move it, it's more about exploding and moving around in as many positions as possible to control your body as you go against the resistance. The more you control going against the resistance, the more you learn to handle the body without it. If you look at how wrestlers simulate takedowns, suplexes, drills and sprawls you'll see that they fight the band utilizing the mechanics so when they practice on the mat, they're fast and strong at the same time, they have far greater control over their body. In the gym oriented exercises which is what many are more use to seeing, you'll find that when the band is fighting back, you have to use more muscles just to stabilize you in order to keep from technique being nasty and ineffective. This could be like Squats, Presses, Overhead Work, Lunges, Shoulder Raises, Ab Training and more. 

Don't just time a workout, make use to learn technique and make the timing effective both in how long the workout is and the work that goes into it. It's not as easy as it looks and some exercises are pretty damn complex so take the time to practice, don't practice just going through the motions. Stay amazingly awesome and you got a cool discount that gets more bang for your buck than just wholesale (There are other discounts on top of mine that you can find as well). Use the code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% off the order.  

Well....Here Goes Nothing

Since I've been training to get back into shape, I've leaned out a bit and because of the no appetite during that little fiasco I had, I lost weight. I was down to 238 but with the appetite back, I went back up about 3 lbs. or so and right now sitting at 241. It has been crazy and I love to keep sharing what the Dopa Band has done for me in terms of reviving my conditioning and explosiveness. 

I said it was a game changer and the results speak for themselves. Before the little bitch that was making my leg and back hurt with pure torture, I was making headway and was around 250-255 most of the time and stayed in shape as you've seen my workouts but with the rehab, weight/fat loss and progressing to get my strength and other attributes back, my body is shaping and slimming down. Yes, I still have some work to do (don't we always) but this is the leanest I've been in a very long time. I feel great and I'm going hard on the workouts while being smart about listening to my body. 

Being inspired by the Wrestlers who brought this Band to the world, they've just been awesome putting out demos and are very encouraging. They're athletes are top notch and some of those wrestlers are going to the Olympics. Their hard work is just mind blowing and the exercises they show with the bands are nothing short of just unbelievable explosiveness, technique, power and speed. These men and women are some of the most conditioned on the planet and I get to work with the same equipment they do. It's like carrying on a tradition like a kid growing up to play baseball and plays the same positions that legends made their mark on and hit the ball with the same passion today as did men like Honus Wagner, The Babe, Ernie Banks, Willie Mays, Mike Schmidt and Pete Rose did 35-100 years ago. 

I don't have a shredded physique or have six pack abs and god knows I don't have it in me to build 24 inch pythons but I do what's possible to be in shape when certain things arise and be in enough condition to do many things. I'm very proud of the body that is shaping and I know the Dopamineo Band will take me to places both in mind and body that I haven't gone to before. I will always have my isometrics, doing fun animal moves, step ups to honor Bob Backlund and be a sledgehammer smashing machine but I've got to tell you, this Band has opened new doors for my training and even just a few minutes with this thing, it has been a hell of a ride. 

The world needs to see more of what these Bands can do for your training and overall fitness. You can modify it however you like; you can go slow, you can go fast, you can learn old school techniques, flexibility work, learn what the best conditioned athletes do to prepare for matches and how to use the Band safely. Safety, solid technique and consistent effort is just a piece of the overall spectrum of what this Silicone piece of equipment is capable of and what it can make out of you. Karl Gotch said "Conditioning is your greatest hold" and I'm sure if he was alive to see these things and add on the submissions that has made many men be feared to even get on the mat with, he would approve. Whatever gets you into bad ass shape (that keeps things long term of course) is a thumbs up in my book. 

Don't forget the 10% Discount you can use when you order one or multiple of these when you punch in POWERANDMIGHT when you go to checkout. Keep killing it, train with intent and intensity while being amazingly awesome. 

A So Not Walk In The Park Sub 45 Min Workout

It was intense, insane and one of the longest workouts I've done in a while. I keep raising the bar on myself and just making things more interesting and finding out what I'm willing to push to see what my body can handle. Some might call my workouts crazy but even for me, that should've put me in the nuthouse (maybe). 

The other day, I wanted to see what I can do with Supersetting the Dopa Band and Step Ups. Haven't tried it before so I figured what could possibly go wrong? Not only did it go right but it made me sweat so much, I thought I was going to need a gallon of water to get all of it back (slight exaggeration). In all seriousness, this was a workout I needed and elevating my conditioning. The only real rest was marking off sets and getting right back into it. The weird thing was, by the end, I was moving faster and had that "runner's high" feeling where I went into a state that felt great and my focus was at its peak. 

The idea was to do upper body movements with the Band and just do bodyweight with the Step Ups. Here's the workout...

100 Lateral Raises (4x25)

200 Step Ups (4x50)

100 Curls (4x25)

200 Step Ups (4x50)

100 Chest Presses (4x25)

200 Step Ups (4x50)

200 Alternating Rows (4x50 - 25 per arm)

200 Step Ups (4x50)

Total: 500 Reps Of Upper Body & 800 Step Ups 

Time- 44:09

Each superset was 25-50 reps of a Dopa Exercise and 25 Step Ups per leg. I take great pride in being able to do this but it's also important to be humble in that to not fill my ego because this isn't meant to be done all the time unless you're one of those insane Dagestani Wrestlers that are just machines with levels of conditioning that rank right up there at the top of the food chain. 

Yesterday, I did another workout that hit my legs a little differently which is why I most likely will end up just "taking it easy" today and do low level work with the band and doing isometrics. This workout was to work as many reps as possible while taking in 20 breaths and doing drills and techniques of going out as far as the thing can stretch 10-20 times going Forward, Sideways & Backwards. The reps taking in breaths were waves, tricep pulls, alternating rows and ski jumps and the legs were a walk out or a slower version of a shooting wrestling drill for 40 total reps (20, 10, 10), 20 walking at the side (10, 10) and drilling backwards for 40 (20,10,10). This hit a lot of the muscles in the legs especially in the hips since it's been a while doing side to side movements. 

Practically everyday there's been some kind of workout with the Dopa Band and just love experimenting and finding ways to work with this thing. There's so much you can do with it and it will humble you. This band has been the closest to wrestling since I was on the mat years ago, I know it doesn't have the same flare of actually wrestling but the drills, the conditioning, the fight against the resistance, the intensity and the ability to strengthen the body in ways that are new to you are all part of the process. 

I even weighed myself today and I'm sitting at 241 lbs. Only gained back about 3 since I've had my appetite back and doing what's possible for me workout wise. I was feeling it yesterday after some frustration with something in the backyard and felt it in my hip but other than that, I feel much stronger, more explosive, energetic and my stamina has skyrocketed. I'm telling you without thinking twice about it, the Dopa Band is a fucking game changer and it makes training a bit more fun and interesting. You don't have to be a wrestler or a fighter to get the benefits out of it, just a good old fashioned workout is more than enough for most and there are so many ways to use it it's practically endless. 

Use my Discount to get 10% off your order by using the code POWERANDMIGHT. You can even do custom bundles or have pre-set bundles that give you even more discounts. Get some for your family, group classes, gym, Fight School, Wrestling Room or just to get a great workout in at home, there's tons of options. Keep killing it guys and stay amazingly awesome.