Shoulder Health & Mobility

 It can be hard to adjust the way we do things as we get older. We can still do amazing things when we are consistent and listen to our bodies. The trouble is at times, we can get very cocky and become overzealous and anxious so we push ourselves and get hurt. It takes time to recover and it won't be easy getting back to what we are capable of or working around it. 

We pull muscles, put strain on the joints and lose our mobility in the process. It's great to be strong, it's another to be mobile and durable. When we learn to strengthen our joints and ligaments, it becomes a whole new ball game in the realm of living a quality life. That's one of the reasons why I enjoy swinging the Indian Clubs from time to time. Some light work but a huge emphasis on conditioning the areas that keep the body in tact and healthy. It's not a matter of strength, it's a matter of flow and control for a period of time. Some start out with 1/2 pound clubs and others work up to 2-3 pounders. The weight is not meant to be taken lightly (pun intended), it's meant to keep your body healthy and build resilience so less chances of getting injured becomes a priority.

Clubs have been around for many centuries from the time of ancient warriors to the modern day fitness enthusiast who shows classic exercises for health and durability in the shoulders, wrists, elbows, hands and even the core. Clubs can be done with full body workouts and it wakes up the brain as you flow through the patterns with smooth intention and focus. Some do them for time, others for a certain amount of reps, either way if you can control the club and utilize the patterns with efficiency, you can have a hell of a session. Some days I've done 500-1000 total reps with my clubs, other times just a couple hundred or less, it just depends on what I want to do and how I feel that day. It feels really good, gives off an endorphin high and it puts you into a different state of being. It's moving meditation. 

Injuries can be a bitch, some are worse than others and some are mild but we don't want to injured too often or at all because every injury can make or break a person no matter how big or little it is. That's the great thing about clubs as well, to utilize them for prehab or rehab to train those muscles and joints back to a good state of harmony and health. It's a superweapon for mobility conditioning. 

People like Zenkahuna are perfect examples of applying old school methods to keep your quality of life alive with positive affirmations, harmony through physical movement and playful creativity. Look him up, one of the most influential people with an amazing soul. 

Play around with Clubs, learn the movements and patterns, customize your own workouts and have fun. Be old school with a smile. Be amazingly awesome.   

Swing Away With A Mace

            One of the oldest tools of the ancient warriors is the Mace or Gada of Indian Culture. It was a soldier’s prominent weapon for combat which he also used to train sufficiently with. When he swung it, it was beautiful but also powerful. A Mace can range in weight to well over 70 lbs. and an expert of the Gada took no exception to master its intimidating look. It’s come into prominence lately in the last few years even though it’s not as popular as the clubs; it’s still an effective exercise.

            In wrestling, circular movements are the foundation of mastering the art like the Hindu Squats & Hindu Push-ups, the Gada and the Clubs. These things build a level of strength & endurance that works the whole body from head to toe and give you a workout that will have you begging for mercy. In its heyday, Indian Wrestling or Kushti was the dominant sport and nobody made it more feared all over than the Great Gama. He used these very same exercises and tools to become the only undefeated man in his sport with a record of 5000 matches won. Using the Gada in a circular fashion works your body like very few can compare.

            There are many ways to use the Mace, the main one is what’s called 360’s where you put one hand over the other, push up and let the Mace swing over the shoulders as you keep a tight grip. I love this exercise as it works your upper body like crazy and the heavier it is, the more balance you’re going to need to do this with ease and that’s where great strength and coordination come into play. Other exercises like spearing, chopping, shoveling, curling and others work the body like I said before that very few can compare. Karl Gotch also used this and can be do well over 100 reps with a 50 lb. Mace and did it with ease even into his 60’s. A workout just with this can help you gain flexibility in the shoulders, hits your obliques, strengthens the arms and works your back to give you that muscular look but have the strength to go along with it. Never underestimate this.

            I've always emphasized old school training because quite frankly it works but more than that it gives you a chance to feel like you’re back in time to a place where training was not that huge on society and fitness was more of health and natural strength & conditioning. Take into consideration that at this point in History, if you wanted to get in awesome shape you used basic weights, odd objects if you were in a job that required that, trained outside climbing, swinging clubs and a mace, plus diets back then didn't exist. To get the most benefit, think old school training and eating because when you come to grips with this, it gives you a perspective on why it’s so much better for you and less confusing than the crap being thrown around today. Give it a shot and be shocked on how simple real exercise can be without the wear and tear of isolating every single thing in your body.

Finally My Opinion On Crossfit

           I tend to be opinionated about certain things every once in a while or I may make mention on certain things. This little trend of Crossfit seems to be the talk of fitness these days and I do have something to say about it. I have family who does Crossfit and they’re 2 of my cousins by marriage, they’re serious about it and when I don’t have any issue with that I do care about them, one of them is a cop. Well you’re about to get my uncut, uncensored and thoughts going to my mouth about this thing people want to do these days. You ready, because here it comes baby.

            Crossfit is not all that new; this type of thing has been around for ages and believe it or not it was a staple for wrestlers in ancient India & Middle Eastern tradition for the sport of Wrestling. These guys would move fast during exercises and go from one to another, they’d swing clubs, maces, do crazy push-ups and squats plus they’d have to dig the pit which was their wrestling mat and prepare it for the day. Imagine what their workout of the day was, nothing like crossfit makes up I guarantee you that.

            Being in great shape is great and I’m all for people who want to do that but what I can’t stand is people getting hurt and bruising themselves up because their stupid enough to not make the effort to learn the actual lift or exercise. Calluses is one thing which we can’t control, you’re bound to get scrapped every now and then and I know, I have had my fair share of getting my hand blistered from pull-ups and kettlebells. To train with efficiency, learn the actual lift and/or exercise and do a weight you can handle because if you can’t you’re going to get problems that will last long periods of time.

            I’ve heard about those Workouts Of The Day and although I love the idea of changing things up to avoid doing the same shit over and over, it gets to me that those workouts don’t have any real structure on pace and having a specific level to start out with, if you’re advanced that’s one thing but at the same time if you’re new to the damn thing, you don’t need to be Speedy Gonzales to catch up to somebody. There are days where you can challenge yourself and try to beat your best record but not 3-4 times a week, that’s just plain retarded and it leads to getting injured. A specific WOD should give you a way to make your own pace, have more technique involved and work on things that doesn't lead to injury; you can do things that won’t put you on a back burner.

            I've seen the videos on youtube of these Crossfit gyms that have people doing some outlandish and dumb shit that I've ever seen in my life. I realize that YouTube isn't the best resource but I've literally seen one of my cousins have plenty of bruises on her that looked like she got her ass kicked by somebody and acts like it’s not a big deal. Fuck that dude lol. I love how someone can push themselves but not to the point to where they’re looking like they got their ass kicked literally. Training is about having fun and giving your body tools that will give you long lasting health, strength and vigor. If you like getting bruised, that’s your business but don’t expect your life to be one happy picnic when down the road your joints will be crackling and you’re not going to move because it hurts so bad, trust me I did that when I was as young as 19 and 20 years old, literally 10 years ago that was happening to me because I thought I was this big shot weight lifter and throwing stuff around like it was a blast but I paid the price for it.

            Technique is one of the most important factors of training, you have bad technique you’re going to suffer the consequences. In my opinion, I can’t stand kipping pull-ups, unless you’re climbing or something it shouldn't be a pull-up, you’re looking at your joints feeling like shit and tendinitis like a motherfucker. Regular pull-ups are far better for your health and way better on your joints and muscles because when you control your body through keeping it tense or by muscle control and use the muscles at work, you have a better chance of building a great powerful back and strong ass arms and abs. The lifting in most of these gyms are ridiculous and you have some shmuck that doesn't know a clean or deadlift for the life of him you’re better off learning from an old timer and reading about that old school style that leads to great strength, power and efficient muscle building. Actually learn the lift and you’ll be surprised what comes up when you become stronger, fitter and have greater tempo.

            Not all crossfit gyms are like this and there are some guys that want to give you ways to be strong, fit and healthy as best as possible, one in particular ran by a friend of mine named Frank Dimeo and one of his guys who help him Dru Patrick have a gym that’s dedicated to bringing the best out of someone and keep them strong and fit with as little injuries as possible if any. You want to be creative and they have plenty of that.

            Creativity is essential for success and when you create a workout that gets you fired up I’m all for that. I don’t believe in doing someone else’s creative workout unless it has a challenge that’s fair enough for you to take on, like Bud Jeffries’ Outlaw Challenge Series, it has challenges that may look messed up but they’re challenges that have great value to them. Most Crossfit gyms have these random workouts that are named after women and I’ll never understand that. I’ve seen some of those things have exercises and timing that is just plain dumb and beating the clock is not going to get you anywhere in the long run. Create your own thing, use your own tempo and speed and work on your technique, use a progressive system that’s suitable to your goals and never be afraid to start at the very beginning because you don’t have to be great to start but progress to become great.

            You’re probably thinking, “If you’re giving that much shit about Crossfit, why do you promote a company like Rogue?” Good question, the answer is because as much as I don’t like some of Crossfit’s ideals I still feel it’s needed in one way or another. I like the idea of doing things that are crazy and challenging, not to the point of hurting yourself but to do lifts, use hammers, have racks that you can do some crazy lifting doing partials. I like that it’s become a sporting like event where you have men and women pushing themselves through different obstacles that have that Rocky type feeling. I firmly believe the Crossfit Games should be in the Olympics, it gives people a chance to see the very best tackling exercises that have been around for ages. Do the technique right, have efficient control and balance yourself right with speed and power, I don’t see why not do them. 

Let’s Go Clubbing

            And you thought I was going to tell you to hit the bars, go dancing and have a night on the town. Wrong again. Having fun can be one thing and there’s nothing wrong with going out and having a good time but for right now, health is the focus point here and I’m going to share with you some history, training, ideas and things to try on to get you up to a higher level of strength, flexibility and super power in the joints and muscles.

            The club wasn't originally known as a group of people or a fitness place to go to or even the name of some pampas ass rich people’s venue. This club or series of clubs was the training tool for wrestlers in the middle east for their sport called Kushti, similar in style to our Greco-Roman but still can use the legs for take-downs and such. Each morning a typical coach or Guru would have his athletes get up before dawn, run a couple miles, come back and do warm up drills, wrestle, eat/drink and get back to training until the day was over. In the middle of these sessions, the wrestlers would often swing what’s called the Jori or the Gada/Mace in various weights and proportions. These tools would help the wrestlers learn to move weight in various movements mostly circular.

            When the British colonized in various Middle Eastern countries such as India learned the skills of club swinging and other exercises and took them back to the English colonies in Europe and eventually to the Americas most notably in Northern America and trained with these very same tools for battle during the American Revolution and other wars soon after. It became a hit in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries as you had Physical Culturists from one side of the earth to the next teaching the various movements of the Clubs. Unless you were an advanced athlete, you had to get a weight heavy enough to work but the majority of Clubs used were very light in weight no more than 10-20 pounds and even less than that. The less weighted clubs were used to aid and strengthen flexibility in the arms, shoulders and elbow joints of the upper body giving you that awkward but effective range of motion if you were an athlete or just an average guy looking to be in shape.

            The most famous Wrestler of that era in India was The Great Gama, if you ever read my articles you would know who he is by now. He is considered by many to be the most feared wrestler of his generation, not even the legendary grapplers Frank Gotch & George Hackenshmidt wanted to face this beast of a man. At 5’7 and no more than 270, Gama was at his peak the best conditioned athlete, although his numbers are exaggerated by any stretch he like many other students at that time wrestled, swam, did hundreds of calisthenics such as squats and push-ups and being on a diet that the majority was vegetarian. At times during his 5000 undefeated winning streak, Gama would receive a basket of tropical fruits and vegetables as a championship trophy in his honor as a vegetarian. One of the most famous pictures of the legendary grappler is of him standing with a massive club on his shoulders. This club wasn’t used for training but was considered a Trophy for a big time championship. The club is said to have weighed at 80 lb.

            Club swinging when done properly takes strength training to a whole new level. You can lift as many weights as you want but if you tried to swing a 30 or 40 lb. club you’d getting your ass kicked in the first minute. With lighter clubs however these can help strengthen the joints in your upper body to peak condition. Clubs have been used by top MMA athletes, Football players, baseball players, strongmen, gymnasts, wrestlers, war vets as far back as the Civil War. Some Clubs are made out of natural wood but you can also get them steel made or with very hard rubber. Two guys I can think of that have really cool versions of the Club are Ryan Pitts at Strongergrip.com and Scott Sonnon at Clubbells.tv. Each of them have their own style of swinging and one of them believe it or is used in Yoga to get that extra edge from doing free-handed postures.

            Like with everything else, it takes skill and practice different movements in precise dynamic fashion but they’re a lot of fun to do. I can’t wait to get my own set of clubs that I can play with but for now I’m settling with what is just as fun and even cooler than the clubs and that’s a couple Thor Hammers that I have. The Thor Hammer is just as effective as a regular club for swinging but the extra benefits of hitting it with a tire and the fact that the handle is much thicker than a regular hammer or club makes it that much more effective for grip strength, hand/eye coordination, tendon and joint building and the ability to just hold it for a period makes it a hell of an isometric exercise. Get your hands on your own sets of clubs or hammers and jack up your strength and conditioning faster than ever before. Keep it interesting and have fun, that what it’s all about.

Indian Clubs: From Wood To Steel For A Fierce Grip

For centuries wrestlers of the Middle East have been known for a number of things but the two main ones are wrestling and swinging different objects. The Clubs have been a stable point for wrestlers as long as the sport and for good reason. They train the body in neither ways nor weights or bodyweight exercise can touch. Sure the athletes used some weights and almost exclusively bodyweight but the clubs give a different advantage, one a wrestler needs for stable conditioning and that’s the grip.

Have you heard of the Great Gama or WWE Hall Of Famer The Iron Sheik? These two in my opinion are the biggest names in Middle Eastern wrestling. Gama is from what is now Pakistan and the Sheik is from Iran but yet both countries carry the sport of wrestling as the major sport almost to the equivalent to what America is to Baseball. The clubs were played a big role for how they trained and wrestled. Gama is said to have wrestled in 5000 matches and never lost once. That should tell you what kind of condition and how strong he was. The most important picture of the true great one is of him holding a 80lb. club which is the representation of the world title.

The Sheik is of a totally different realm to wrestling but similar in some ways. He was once an Olympic wrestler who was once a bodyguard for the Shah Of Iran. He became a professional wrestler and was trained by Wrestling Legend Verne Gagne at his training camp in Minnesota. He went on to become of the most charismatic villains in the history of Professional wrestling and held Tag Team Championships and even the WWE Title at time or 2 and rivaled with two of some of the most popular wrestlers in history and that was Hulk Hogan & Sergeant Slaughter. He can wrestle with the best of them and a trademark challenge he made was none other then the clubs. He challenged anyone who can keep up with him swinging heavy clubs or the Middle Eastern term Jori and no one was able to keep up. Now that may have been for storyline purposes but without a doubt the clubs are no joke.

I have played around with the Jori myself and I can safely say they will kick your ass one was or another. Start out 5 min. with these things sounds easy right? Think again. Yeah you can keep swinging for a bit but your grip will start to tire and when that happens your form becomes sloppy and you will need to rest. Yet without question this will help your grip in ways you can’t imagine. Remember my post about building tendons? Well the clubs are no exception. You can get fit with these bad boys pretty quick and it doesn’t matter if they 2 lb. or 50 lb. you will get an awesome workout out of it and its fun. If a workout can’t be fun then what’s the point?

Now for those who are paying attention you will find that the clubs that I have been mentioning are mostly made of wood. What kind it’s hard to say. Nowadays you can get clubs made out of wood, rubber and steel. You can find the wooden clubs at a few places such as http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/indian_clubs.html or at http://www.indianclubs.com/. Now for the steel patented clubs you can get those at Stronger Grip ran by my bud and grip master Ryan Pitts. He’s plenty of variations for the clubs including a hybrid of Thor’s Hammer. You can use it as club swinging for training or use it in your hammer training. That to me is genius. Feel the power in your hands as you help continue a tradition for the last millennium and how you can help it grow by training these implements to how you see fit to your training.

When you swing these clubs I want you to picture for a moment as if you were back in time where you were training in the pits of Indian wrestling ring and you are warming up with clubs getting ready for battle and then you just man handle your opponent. Now are these specific to wrestlers? No they can be used for strength, flexibility, stamina, and rehab and to help gain an advantage in whatever you do. I have friends who are strongmen and they use them. It’s important we help restore time honored program that has been used as long as the culture. Put yourself into the hands of these powerful tools and become a fitness machine.

The Hammers Of Thor

Even if you're not a comic book fan, you can still feel like the superhero/God in your own training with the use of either sledgehammers, clubs or a combination of the two. My man Ryan Pitts has created some of the most unique peices of equipment on the planet and not only do they make your training that much more interesting the tools just look plain cool as hell. They can turn your grip and your whole body into one well rounded machine and thats no lie.

Because of the new movie Thor coming out pretty soon he has developed a set of clubs that look just like the God's weapon of choice and trust me when I say this when you get your hands on these babies even the go himself may not be able to handle you. I've played around with similar clubs and his sledgehammer they kicked my ass all over the place. I can bend steel, rip up phonebooks and lever a 12 lb. hammer but nothing compares to the type of workout these bad boys will put you through. With practice and will power your tendons will become steel cords, your wrists will move in complete unison with the body with both strength and flexibility and more then not your hands will have a bonified bone-crushing grip.

Grip strength is a must for any athlete or the average joe and very few things done right can give you a grip that can destroy metal itself. What Ryan has put out for you can help you achieve a level of strength and power that certain things just cannot do. He has taken an idea that was used by middle-eastern wrestlers from centuries long ago into a powerhouse of all-around strength and athleticism. I have seen on film how strong these wrestlers were with clubs, maces and their own body and now take that old-school tradition along with minor touches with Thor's Hammers and the sledgehammer and you'll have total weapons of mass destruction in your hands (Use them for good and thats with total sincerity). Take your strength to New Levels and gain an advantage on your compeition with a grip of steel and a body of pure power and condition. Now Its HammerTime!!!!!!!!



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Grip Strength Is A Must

Whether you're a weightlifter, strongman, wrestler, baseball player, MMA Athlete or just an average joe, it is apperent that you develop grip strength in order to enhance your performance. You can do all the exercises you want but if your grip is not up to par then you're not going to go that far. Grip training is one of the most neglected parts of strength and conditioning because a lot of people automatically think its easy to either lift a good amount of weight or do a few fingertip push-ups or grab a hold of GI in a jujitsu match. Actually the exact opposite is true. When you add a good grip workout whether in of itself or as part of your routine, you're building strength that will go a long way. One of the biggest secrets of the old-time wrestlers and strongmen was they're ability to have strong and powerful tendons in the lower arm, wrist and hands. This can be contributed through isometrics, bending steel, wrist curls, thick bar training, using sandbags, pinch gripping and so on.

One of the oldest peices of equipment is the Indian Clubs. They were used in India for many centuries to help wrestlers develop shoulder mobility, Wrist power and strengthening the arms through a series of movements that targeted the upper body that some methods can't reach. The Mace was another tool for Indian Wrestlers because unlike the Clubs, these bad boys taught the body how to coordinated going from from shoulder to shoulder through a single swing that helped strengthen the shoulders, elbows, arms, wrists and hands. With careful practice these things not only took grip strength to another level but it gave a certain advantage that wrestlers in the US didn't have. One of the greatest wrestlers of all-time the Great Gama trained in many forms and not just doing squats and push-ups in the hundreds but used the clubs and the mace. How great was his strength? Well, how about not losing a single match in his entire career, over 5000 victories. That should tell you something how powerful and useful these tools are. There arn't too many places on the internet to find clubs and maces. Yet if I had to pick a source that not only cells clubs and maces but you get to choose hammers, blobs, levers and Grip Dumbbells and thick bar handles.

Take your grip strength to levels unheard of and grab a hold of the power already in you and take charge of your new found strength and conditioning.

http://www.strongergripaffiliate.com/118.html

2" Leverage Block

Indian Clubs

Sledge Hammers

Mace Training

The Great Gama Of India

Ghulum Mohammed aka. The Great Gama was born into a wrestling family that had a legendary legacy and He was soon to follow. Started training at the age of 8 in the sand pits. He gradually built up tremendous strength and endurance that by age 11 he was to enter in a contest of 100's of young wrestlers. It wasnt a wrestling competition it was to determine what exercises these young boys finished that would sure them as either winners or losers. They exercised with indian clubs, maces, hindu push-ups, squats, bridging ect. Gama was declared the winner by a great margin.

As for his training, legend has it he trained everyday by doing thousands of calisthenics and swam and wrestled for hours. Although the numbers seem aggerative it was clear that this young man had the will and mental attitude to withstand such physical training that within the peak of his career he was 5'7 at nearly 260 pounds of solid muscle and might. He wrestled with the best of them wrestling men that came from europe, asia and the americas and none of them seemed to match the strength and will power of Gama. It was estimated that in 5000 matches he was never defeted and hardly ever taken down.

Many men feared him even the great american champions Frank Gotch, George Hackenshmidt ect. Whoever stepped in the pits or the ring knew that they were in for a rough night and yet never seemed to beat him. I admire this man as a world-class athlete and being strong as a bull and even more with an iron mentality. Nobody can match his strength and athleticism not even today when you have rough and tough wrestlers (real wrestlers not in the WWE). His philosophy and program became legendary and were attempted by many but few can follow up just barely a quarter of his power.

If we had more wrestlers like him today, we'd be the number 1 sport in america and the world but not many people want to see things like this. They rather be entertained then be in awe of what power they really possess. Anywho, over the years Gama won championships, took on all comers and after retirement trained his nephews and they became legendary athletes. Gama will and always be the worlds greatest wrestler. If anyone can match half of what he did i'd love to meet him but sadly I feel it will never happen.

If you want to look at the full story of Gama here it is.

http://www.wrestlingmuseum.com/pages/bios/gama2.html


Yours in Power & Might

Ben