Updates On Sciatica

 It has been a rocky road to recovery from my sciatica injury that started nearly a month ago and although the pain comes and goes, it still pretty damn shitty that I can't do what I love to do at my best. Got no one to blame but myself for having it happen and it hasn't been easy trying to do even basic things like walking and standing. There were times where it took me longer to put my clothes on than I normally would. What injury is ever easy? 

Trying different things at a lower pace and even doing beginning stages of certain exercises to help heal. Some things do ok, others not so much and the pain levels sometimes reach excruciating heights that it hurts to put on my socks and shoes. With all the things that I've tried, the two things that seem to bring any comfort training wise is Isometrics and Joint Loosening exercises. Even the most basic animal moves hurt except maybe the Bear Crawl which I only do a minute each day. While we were at the Hot Springs in Montana earlier this month, I did mainly go in the hot and cold pools which temporally helped ease the pain and do Isometrics in the room. 

The Chiropractor is helping to an extent but it's so damn hard to not want to push myself. When I go a little further, that's when it really acts up. I have pushed myself to the point where even climbing stairs feels like an eternity and I really need to listen to my body and stop being so damn stubborn and full of pride. I really don't like it when people have to help me even for the easiest things and sleeping has been a nightmare. 

My sciatica is about as inflamed as you can get and the pain in my nerves shoot all the way down my right leg that ranges from a 3-9 on the pain scale. I haven't felt pain this bad since my leg injuries back in '05. I'm not giving up on myself, I'm still training just in a much smaller capacity and I'm just so damn ready for this thing to be over with. Sometimes I want to see what I can still do but get in my own head and push myself beyond what my own ability is right now and end up suffering for it which maybe is a lesson I need to learn in order to understand how I can find a way to keep doing things but not at full capacity or even half. By my own observation, pain tolerance and the way I can move, my best capacity level of what I know I can do is right now at best 20-25% of what I normally can do and that's stretching it. For me that's just downright horrible but I need to just let my body do its thing and give it time. 

When injuries happen, the biggest fight is with ourselves and at times we'll just barely do anything because we either give up or don't know how to deal with it, other times we fight so damn hard to come back that we overestimate our abilities and can make things worse. We do need to find that balance but the one thing that should always be there is the ability to keep going but work on the progression and doing our best to know our limits but go above them little by little even if it's microscopic. I know damn well that there are people out there who have it far worse than me and they hold their pain in better than I ever could but that's why I also fight to come back because I know this is not going to last forever and it'll give me a better appreciation that I can beat this and that it's important to be thankful I'm still able to do things even in a smaller setting. It's hard but it's not forever. I will be back hitting hammers on a tire again, I will have my agility and strength back doing crazy animal stuff and I will dominate the step ups again because that's one of the exercises that has kept my legs in great condition in the first place. 

If you're injured, don't give up on yourself, fight back and make it your mission to be better again. Strengthen yourself but also listen to your body even when that part of you wants to push beyond, we can only push so much but it doesn't mean we have heart. Keep being amazingly awesome and keep on keeping on. 

Forearms Built For Popeye

 Well, in a sense. No, my forearms are no where near The Sailor Man but over a period of YEARS, I've developed some pretty decent lower arms that have arm wrestled three generation of a logger family, swung heavy sledgehammers as heavy as 75 lbs, bent tough steel (short and shaped long pieces as well), tore through phonebooks with ease and lots of rows and pulls using Fat Gripz. Alas, I'm not done or haven't peaked yet.

The lower arms aren't just merely little muscles in the forearms, there's bone and tendon strength there too that gives you a different outlet of strength over purely weights and bodyweight style. The grip strength that came with these thick puppies wasn't made overnight or just a pump after a workout. Believe it or not, I never really specialized in them, just worked them hard like anything else and focused into the muscles as I trained them. Some of it is genetics but the reality is, I busted my ass to make them strong yet supple, flexible and durable. 

Sure I've trained with wrist rollers and done wrist curls and all that but nothing builds the forearms IMO than working with Sledgehammers, Isometric Training, Thick Handle Work. Working the fingers as well is part of the package deal when you're building grip strength and/or muscle building. Very little Isolated movements are done, like with the whole body, everything should be working together regardless of what you specialize in. When you're training with sledgehammers, it's a feeling you don't get with a lot of other stuff; the swing, the just right amount of grip strength to tighten up on the handle to move the hammer effectively (can't grip it too tight but you can't have a weak and loose grip either). When you've done hundreds or over 1000 reps in training, it's not just a pump you feel, it's that surge of power coursing through your veins and feeling like a warrior who was victorious in battle. 

Having a powerful grip is also one of two things; a life saving entity and a make or break formality in sports. For the life saving aspect, the ability to grab somebody to save them from a burning building or pulling them out of a rapid riverbend puts a whole new meaning to the term "real life strength." In sports, hitting the ball far, throwing it down the field, working a submission in MMA or the strength to toss your opponent like a rag doll in Amateur Wrestling all have ties to a strong grip. Granted not all who have a strong grip have huge muscles, some 165 lb stick figure of a man can have incredible grip strength either from farming, labor work or other things. One of the greatest figures in wrestling history had a grip that to this day still baffles people; the legendary Danny Hodge was able to crush apples, break pliers and make men fall to their knees with his handshake. 

If you were to specialize in building incredible gripping power, focus mainly on the tendons and ligaments...This could go with high rep work, isometrics, thick bars or attaching Fat Gripz to your barbells and dumbbells, fingertip push-ups and plenty of pulling and pushing while focusing on the grip itself. There are far better experts out there than me that make my grip strength seem like I have the strength of Twiggy; guys like Dennis Rogers, Brooks Kubik, Edward Aston, Mac Batchelor and others are some of the true masters of grip strength. As you work exercises that flex or squeeze the muscles, be sure to work the opposite doing extensor work as well. A great book to look into is Molding A Mighty Grip by George Jowett. 

Don't just go for strength either, condition the lower arms as much as you can because having strong, durable and conditioned hands goes a long way than just maxing out for a short period of time. Moving furniture is a hell of a way to find out what your grip is or some good old fashioned arm wrestling or tug of war. Having strong and conditioned hands can also indicate how healthy you are as well. Be strong, build some mighty mitts and keep being amazingly awesome. 

60 Seconds Of Crawling Leads To Many Health Benefits

 Animal Movement is by far one of the very best methods of exercise anyone can do. Granted in times like these where information is overwhelming and the plethora of beginner to advanced movements tends to get awkward and confusing (depending on whom you learn the movements from), it's still important to understand that even the most simple movements can have a major impact on health and well-being. Fitness in and of itself isn't glamorous, glistening bodies or going so damn hard you pass out; it's about developing skills and strengths that play a major role in how we keep living to our fullest.

One of the most basic forms of Animal Movement is the Bear Crawl. It has been used throughout the ages and comes in different ways to perform it along with using it to condition the body in various ways as well. It can be done slow or it can be done fast but either way, it'll challenge your brain and muscular function despite its simplicity. 

I saw this picture of the Bear Crawl on Facebook in a post by Wong Yuen-Ming that went like this....

“Bear Walking” is popular these days but probably not many realize it was popular in old China as well, so I have taken the liberty to translate a short intro to the practice from a Ming era manual (circa 1500). Enjoy!

‘Tiger emerging from the cave’

First, assume the posture of a quadrupedal animal.

Extend the front and bend the back to move with strength.

Then, bend the front and extend the back, following the previous method.

Do this gongfu thirty-eight times, pausing at each one.

Zhi Gang said:

Use your hands as feet, hence the saying, "Assume the posture of a quadrupedal animal, extending the front and bending the back", means to position your body firmly and place your hands on the ground. "Extend the back and bend the front" means extend your legs and move forward. Doing so back and forth, your body will look like a tiger emerging from the cave, your muscles and bones will be relaxed, your organs will be at ease, and your blood flow will be smooth. 

This is one of the coolest depictions of the classic exercise in ancient text. A qi gong style format that not only shows what this exercise does but what it does for the body as you perform it. We all have heard of this exercise being used to torture athletes in sports like Football & Wrestling which for all intents and purposes is one of the many reasons why it has lasted so long as a conditioning exercise and fat burner. When we see it from a different point of view, it changes the stereotype that it's meant only for conditioning when in fact, it can be used to enhance one's brain and motor functions as we get older and we can't move as fast as Speedy Gonzales (Not that we last that going that fast anyway). Doing this exercise slower hits the muscles differently, it focuses not just the awareness of the movement but also the control and the amount of focus it takes. Yes it's very simple to do but it's not so easy to control especially when you go so slow that it's almost like time stood still. 

 

Now, if we were to practice this exercise each day to wake up our Brain Fog, imagine what the possibilities would be if we felt more alive in the morning and the things we can accomplish with a mind and body that's ready to go. The way it said to do this exercise 38 times and pausing after each one (who knows how long to do it) can be revitalizing to the organs and harness the neurons needed to wake the body up better than a cup of coffee. You can count if you wish and practice it that way, you can also do it for just 60 seconds. Just crawl for one full minute till the timer hits and you're done. That may not sound like much but if you were to do this everyday for a year, the body changes, your mind highly likely will be sharper and clearer, you have more energy and possibly have better days starting off with a smile or an endorphin high. 365 minutes is just over 6 hours, all that time crawling. Those 6 hours can be life changing, hell just a week can be life changing. Try it for 7 days and see how you feel in that time, that's 7 minutes all together, 7 minutes of just moving like a beast in the wild. 

If you really want to amp up the ante and want to push yourself, a couple times a week you can do a Tabata style workout that takes no more than 5 minutes to complete that will have you gasping and breathing hard like a madman. Crawl for 10 seconds fast, rest for 20 seconds and repeat for a total of 10 rounds. Although you're resting the majority of the time and the amount of work is really only 1:40 seconds long, it can turn you into a fitness machine and rev up the metabolism like crazy. Not to mention it creates spikes in HGH and Testosterone.

Have fun with this exercise whether you do it fast or slow, just don't go so hard you fall on your face and hurt yourself. It's meant to be an experience, a personal form of growth and physical activity. It'll feel like being a kid again just playing. It's not an exercise that's meant to be boring or a chore, it's meant to enhance those neurons and fire up the excitement in your system. Keep being amazingly awesome. 

Healing Up Well

 Training to get back to your full strength is never easy and can be frustrating because you're at limited capacity. Some of the simplest tasks can be difficult but you push through because you don't to just lay around and not do a damn thing. With the way my hip has gone, it's healing up pretty damn well. Been seeing a chiropractor and going for a few more adjustments and had a massage yesterday which really loosened everything up.

Little by little I'm doing what is helping with recovery like the Isometrics, Stretching, Step Ups, some Crawling and other things. Yesterday, I did some sledge striking for the first time in a while with my 31 lb Giants Hammer, getting in 120 reps. Could easily do more but didn't want to push it any further than I had to. I felt it for sure but I wasn't in pain (merely discomfort). I expect things out of myself and not to prove how tough I 'am or trying to hide the pain but to progress little by little while being aware of what I can and can't do. Sometimes we push ourselves beyond what we know is right to do and rarely it comes out good, most of the time it ends up biting us in the ass.

It's not just knowing your limits either, it's about understanding them and finding ways to adjust so you can maintain or get better as time goes on. It's easy to act all macho and that pain is temporary and keeping that "pain is telling you you're not dead" mentality but unless it's under severe circumstances, for normal everyday life, there are ways to make the pain worse and add time onto it and not get rid of it completely. Learn the difference between pushing through pain as if your life depended on it and recovering so you can be efficient. 

My hip is getting better to the point where my flexibility is coming back and it's not shooting down my leg so much along with not being able to sit right. When you know things are working, it gets better as time goes on. When it's not working, you need to reassess so you can find the right "formula" for you to recover. Experiment and be aware of what feels right and what doesn't. We all recover differently and it's not a good idea to push the same direction of a method because some things don't work for certain people and injuries and pain tolerance is different. Work with your own style to get back to your strongest again without pain and suffering.

Train to be efficient, don't train to suffer more pain than what you're already dealing with because that could lead to problems not just in the physical but the mental as well. I know what it's like to be in pain but also take the frustration with that pain onto others which is never a good idea cause you might say things in the heat of a moment that can never be taken back. Pain can do a number on us and no matter how much we deny it, it can put us on a path that hurts others along with ourselves in the end. So train to get yourself out of pain so it doesn't cost you more time later. 

Keep being amazingly awesome and have a kick ass day.   

A Setback Can Be A Blessing In Disguise

Injuries happen and we can't always be in control of when they happen but we can choose to either work with it (depending on the significance) or give up on ourselves and let the injury completely defeat us. Although pain tells us we're not dead, it's not a great thing to deal with either (unless you got some twisted fetish when it comes to pain LOL). 

Back on Friday April 28th, I was going for my Hill Sprint Workout when by the 2nd or 3rd sprint, the lower right side of my body just about collapsed on me and there was an excruciating amount of pain that nearly resembled the pain I felt when I had my leg injuries. If I would've kept going despite the pain, I would be rolling in a ditch next to the road and wouldn't have been able to get up and go home and I didn't have my cell on me to call anybody. My instincts kicked in to immediately stop and truly assess the pain I was in. It was so bad that to me it was a miracle I was able to walk back home. 

I knew exactly why this happened and I only have myself to blame. A few days earlier, I was going for a workout with the 70 lb. kettlebell doing deadlifts and do shoulder carries with my 50 lb. sandbell. In the first round of the wotkout, something tweaked in my lower back on the right side. I knew I had to stop and just do something else. I went out the next day doing Sprints and I felt a little something but still managed the 6 sprints I was going for. Took it slightly easy on that Thursday but on Friday it just took me out. It was literally hitting me around 3/4 of the way into my 3rd sprint when the pain was too much to go on. 

I got an appointment with the chiropractor and the pain went down slightly and my posture was better but it didn't 100% fix the problem. It's most likely a sciatica injury and it has shifted from my lower back to my right hip. The pain comes and goes and my flexibility is limited to not even sit in a lotus position without being in pain. Heat and Ice was barely doing anything. Me & my wife went on our anniversary trip to Quinn's Hot Springs the following Monday the 1st until we came home Friday on the 5th. It was difficult being comfortable and the pain would shoot up to about an 8 every couple hours or so. Although it was a fun trip, it could've been better if I had not been in agony the majority of the time and I feel bad that I put her through that. In the pools, it helped lessen the inflammation and pain especially in the cold plunge they had there that was between 55-60 degrees Fahrenheit. It wasn't a bad trip by any means, we had a blast and met new people and ate awesome food and chilled out by the pools as much as possible, just sucked that I wasn't at my best. 

Throughout the trip, my training mainly consisted of Joint Loosening, Deep Breathing, Isometrics and walking to the pools. Stretching little by little to not feel pain as much as I could but I wish I could say it wasn't hurting when I stretched. It's a big lesson to learn when you sustain an injury and do whatever you can to heal up. I won't be doing almost anything hardcore including Sprints until I feel 100% which can take a couple weeks. I'm not giving up on my training, just need to let things die down, reduce inflammation and rejuvenate. Focus on flexibility, Isometric Training, some Suspension work and do Step Ups for my legs. The Step Ups are a godsend in this manner since I don't feel as much pain on a scale 1-10 which for the Step Ups is no more than a 3. 15 minutes is my max time and no more than 12-15 reps per leg. 

Pain and Injury is a teacher and it gives you an opportunity to learn what you're capable of mentally and understanding the value of instincts, being aware of what can be done in the moment in time along with making the choices to give yourself time to heal. I'm not the type of person that scarfs down pain pills, muscle relaxers to make myself better. The only things I've taken pill wise to help reduce the inflammation is nothing more than something similar to aspirin and so far since this happened I've only taken them twice. I hate meds with a passion and unless I'm in a hospital bed, you won't see me take anything more than an Advil.

I will get back to full strength soon enough and kick ass the way I was meant to. Take care of your body as much as you can without going overboard. Be smart in your training and keep the injuries to a minimum. I've said it before that we can't 100% prevent an injury but we can reduce the chances significantly if we keep ourselves in check. Stay strong, take care of yourselves and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Working Out While Playing Video Games

 Video Games have been a part of my life since the late 80's playing Super Mario Brothers. Believe it or not, if I remember correctly, my mom actually got me into them because she wanted me to have something to enjoy while I developed my dexterity in my right hand. Although the controller mainly has you using the thumb (especially back in those days when 2-3 buttons were on the right hand side) I learned to use my thumb, pinky and trigger finger which in those early days were a huge thing for me because with most things, I would just try to grip. Still played outside and did many activities as a kid but it was fun playing Sonic, Super Mario Brothers, Quackshot, Star Wars and even Toe Jam & Earl at one point. 

Exercise and Video Games may not sound like they go hand and hand but if you had an imagination, you can create some cool workouts. This was long before Dance, Dance Revolution, the Wii and Kinetic. One of the early games that had you actually moving your body to the controls was that step pad you plugged into to play track and field games like the 100 meters and triple jump. You literally moved your feet like those football drills or sprinting in place in order for the game to work.

Although you have more options today using VR and other things, there's still a small percentage of people who actually exercise while playing Video Games. Every once in a while, I would play baseball or whatever game and at some point, push-ups and squats would be involved. Take for instance playing baseball (this is especially fun if you do 1 on 1 with another person), say you chose to do Push-ups for hitting and Squats for Strikeouts; if you're just playing by yourself you can do 5 push-ups for every hit you make and 10 Squats if you struck out or you strike the batter out. If you're playing with another person (online doesn't count since you can't see the other person) in 2 player mode, they would have to do 10 squats every time they struck out and you have to do 5 push-ups if they get a hit and vice versa. Playing alone, I would at times be getting in as many as 100-150 Squats and over 100 push-ups. It makes things interesting.

You can do this with any game and pick the exercises you want. There's no limit to what you can come up, just don't be throwing controllers or punching objects unless it's a heavy bag. There are a lot of people out there that believe Video Games cause violent tendencies and/or have kids be lazy which isn't always the case. Yes there have been times where a controller may get broken and you might be high on something but all in all, Video Games don't necessarily cause someone to go out on a killing spree or go knock out a hooker, hell you won't see many people try to jump off a building because it happens in a Video Game. We can make video games interesting and different. We can make them productive both mentally and physically. I do realize some people do nothing but play Video Games to the point where they become Vitamin D deficient and need real interaction and remember there is still humans out in the world. 

Video Games these days compared to the 80's and 90's might as well be two different planets since these days it's all about buying up stuff and overreacting to some 10 year old kicking your ass or a 400 lb guy with Cheeto dust on his lips acting like he can fight. Back in the day, you had kids who came in after tiring out playing street ball or doing stuff at the park and just chill out playing Mortal Kombat or Tony Hawk's Pro Skater seeing how many flips you can make more than the other kid. It was a completely different atmosphere and a very different aspect of interacting. I do miss those days where we would all play a game or two outside and come back in and try to one up each other playing baseball, racing games and playing Guitar Hero or Tony Hawk. We would even make little bets that were pretty innocent (nothing over the top disgusting) depending on what game we played. If we took that piece of innocence and molded it into something that can be used for exercise, there would be way fitter gamers. 

Make your playing time extra fun and enjoyable, challenge each other in a different way and compete with positive intentions. If you literally have to get into fist fights with someone playing with you over who can outrun the cops in Grand Theft Auto, you need some serious therapy. Be smart, be kind to one another and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Over 100 Done So Far

 The journey continues as I keep grinding with my Hill Sprint Training. Thought I'd share my results so far. There isn't a huge difference but I'll take what I can get and keep getting better and better. I've now reached over 100 Sprints since I started a little over a month ago. Had to reduce the amount of sprints after the first three workouts since I was doing too much just to begin with. I was doing 10 sprints a session and reduced it to 5 each for the next three weeks, I'm now in my second week of 6 sprints a session for 12-15 seconds each. 

Results don't come easy for me and I've actually changed my eating habits around since I started this up again. I've cut back on a number of things and focused more on Steak, Rice, Eggs, Homemade Shakes with Milk & Raw Eggs, Chicken Salads from time to time and some other good stuff. On my days off from sprints, I'll do mainly Isometrics but I also go on walks, play basketball, work with hammers, do circuits and even one workout where I managed 105 slams in 5 minutes with my 20 lb slam ball. I thought I was going to die from that one and that felt more intense than the sprints LOL. 

Isometrics help a lot with the recovery and some days I'll do the intense 7-12 second contractions but other days I'll do 30 seconds or longer doing various positions. Overall like I said there isn't a massive difference in my physique and I still have quite a road ahead of me but I'm loving it and I feel different. I feel lighter even at around 255, my legs feel springy, the definition in the legs is awesome too and haven't felt I lost any strength. Stamina keeps getting better little by little and the endorphin highs are just flat out incredible. 

Not planning to look like Zach Efron from Baywatch but the idea is to slim down more, eat better, drink more water, harden the muscles up a bit and just be in better shape. This is my last year in my 30's and I want to be in the best shape I can be in when 40 hits. Getting a head start isn't a bad thing now is it? I don't want to feel like an old man and still want the ability to keep up. Too many people I know let themselves go after they approach 40 and many younger than me are already starting to wear down from injuries and even dying because of certain lifestyle choices. Although looking like you're in shape and actually feeling and doing things that keep you in shape are different things, I just want to get better little by little and feel like I'm not wearing out and can't keep up. Conditioning and Flexibility becomes more crucial as we age and staying strong is part of that puzzle. 

Sprints are more than just running hard for a few seconds, it's about fighting yourself and discovering where your true strength and will lies. Keep at it and keep being amazingly awesome everyone. 

Mar 20th

Today Apr 24th

 

Combining Isometric Equipment For A Great Workout

 Isometrics can be done in so many ways that it's almost impossible to understand what's better when it comes to equipment or just your bodyweight. Right now I have three different things of Isometric Exercise Equipment that has more exercises than anybody knows what to do with: The Bullworker Iso Bow, The Worldfit Iso Trainer & The Transformetrics Isometric Power Belt. The Power Belt never really got off the ground because of the lack of reasons I'm not going to get into but it is a hell of a piece of equipment that you can take with you just about anywhere. The Iso Bow may not look like much but it packs a hell of a punch if you use it right and gives you a hell of a workout. The Iso Trainer is extremely versatile as it not only does Isometric Exercise but it can also be used as a Suspension Trainer that holds up to around 400 lbs so you can do pull-ups, dips, rows, one-legged exercises, Triceps Extensions, Twists and other things as well.

Yesterday, I worked on all three to get in a great workout doing exercises ranging from pulling apart, curls, squat, presses, bow and arrow, hybrid isometrics and others. It was one of the most fun Iso workouts in a while and felt like I got a lot done in a short amount of time. I've been leaning towards Isometrics in addition to Sprint Training which has helped me shed some fat lately and although I have a good road ahead of me, I'm already ahead of the curve. I will be showing results around next week in regards to achieving over 100 sprints since I started. 

All three of these pieces of equipment can fit into your bag and you've got an entire gym that weighs less than a few pounds. The only people that I know that have experimented with Isometrics far beyond most people were/are Bud Jeffries, Steve Justa, Zenkahuna and a few others. They practically wrote the book on what you can do with your imagination when it comes to Isometrics. There are authors who've written basic elements and a few creative ideas but these guys took Isometrics to heights that just can't be matched. With the exception of Matt Schifferle's Hybrid Isometrics which are very innovative, very few can match the amount of exercises you can come up with. 

From the days of Alexander Zass & Maxick to the overwhelming plethora of training modalities today, Isometrics are a timeless form of training that can be done in so many ways it's not possible to count all the exercises you can do when there's so much to be added onto. As long as you keep it basic, creative and just enough to work with, you can go a hell of a long way to getting strong, fit and keeping you interested for years on end. Isometrics are essential to a healthy life and reap more benefits than I care to count.

Sometimes one piece of equipment isn't enough because to me, it's not about expanding equipment per se, it's about expanding your horizons and creating workouts that hit those sweet spots that certain things may not hit. I'm not saying MORE is better, I'm saying that options can be a good thing. You don't need to try to build an entire gym in less than 300 square feet, just a few things that give you that edge and that are inexpensive without killing your budget. 

The closest thing to the Iso Power Belt I know of that can be used is the Iso-Loop but you can also utilize a strap from Strapworks which you can find on Amazon as well to use for the length you need to get the most out of your workouts and are very affordable as you can do DIY work. It's just as strong and durable. The Iso Bow is just a bad ass and yeah it's smaller but like I said before it packs a punch as you can do both isometrics and dynamic tension exercises. 

Get crazy strong using Isometrics and unlock some of the creative exercises you can come up with to achieve insane goals. In recent times, one guy who did Isometrics for the majority of his workouts got so freaking shredded that it took notice on the bodybuilding stage while being in his 60's. Richard Monoson is a chiropractor in Southern California that has one of the most intense physiques of a man at any age. His Isometric training is pretty basic but proves what it can do for your body regardless how old you are. Very humble man as well. 

Keep being amazingly awesome everyone and keep achieving your goals. 

A Few Benefits Of Rucking

Us humans have been doing this particular activity since the dawn of man as hunter/gatherers. Military men and women have done Rucking in order to keep them in shape so they can be as tough as they need to be when all hell breaks loose. A few benefits that everyday people can have when they practice this bad ass type of training....

1. Unbelievable Endurance & Work Capacity

Not the same as weight training as it aids in building endurance while fatigue is at the bare minimum. The overload for Work Capacity helps build a foundation that gradually progresses as you get stronger just like in the gym. Even the late Louie Simmons was a huge advocate for Work Capacity which included multiple variations of loaded carries, sled pulls and other things.

2. Wicked Awesome For Posture

Believe it or not, adding weight can help aid in building a better posture when it's done properly. It strengthens our muscles that are responsible for keeping us upright. This allows the body to stay in that position much easier when removing weight.

3. Powerful Calorie Burn

With recent studies done by the Compendium of Physical Activities, by rucking its possible to burn up to 650 calories within an hour, a massive 300 more calories than just regular walking. If you were to do about 5 hours a week of rucking, that's 3250 calories burned (nearly the equivalent to losing a pound a week alone). 

4. Let The Sun Shine Bright

Being out in the fresh air is always a huge benefit. It lowers stress, weighs down the cortisol levels and heightens Vitamin D and Testosterone Levels. As us guys age, maintaining and balancing our testosterone becomes more crucial. 

5. It's Safe & Pretty Easy To Do

Screw jogging since it's more exhausting than Rucking is. In fact, it may be even more enjoyable and can be done with better consistency. We all know regardless of your goals, consistency is the key along with eating right (I didn't say diet, just eating right meaning better but not completely depriving yourself). Another added benefit is that rucking is actually safer on the joints than regular jogging. 

Where do you start? Well, a good foundation would be to start with wearing about 10% of your bodyweight (say for a 200 lb man, it be a 20 lb Vest or Backpack). Work your way up little by little. Hell, I'm only using a 40 lb vest when I go out on my rucks. You don't need to go around looking like you're carrying a piano on your back, gradually build up until it feels more than enough to walk with. Very few people will ever use more than 100 lbs to ruck with. The only two people I know of who walked with 300 lbs was Bud Jeffries & Steve Justa. You don't need to push it that far, even on a hike, 50 lbs would be more than enough for most people. It's tough as it is and it can give you the workout of your life. If you could go a good distance with 100% or more of your bodyweight, that's pretty damn impressive and shows some serious strength and conditioning. 

Grab the Kensui Weight Vest to progressively load up using weighted plates. The smallest loadable is up to 80 lbs. The heaviest is loadable to 300 lbs. Save yourself a few bucks by using my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT at checkout to get 10% OFF your order. If you order the 300 lb loadable, this saves you close to a whopping 25 bucks. Have a wonderful day and keep being amazingly awesome. 

The Hill And You

 It can be a love/hate relationship and sometimes you just want to quit but when you push because you know what's at stake, you find out what you're capable of. Now that can be a lot of things in life and some will take it to extremes even to the point of extreme conditions to prove how tough they are but in the end, there has to be balance amongst the chaos. For this specific reason I'm going with Hill Sprints here.

When you're at the hill and you sprint up that son of a bitch like your life depended on it, there's a lot of things going on that many don't realize. The hill can be your best friend or your worst enemy depending on how you do it and treat it as such because believe it or not, that hill is like a coach. I teaches you what you're doing wrong, how to correct your stride, how you proceed with the right speed and how to apply the strength of your fortitude to its demanding presence. If you have someone to go sprinting with, that's great and you could push each other and encourage each other but even that is rare to find unless you're training for a sport like Football or Wrestling or MMA. The majority of the time, a Hill Sprinter is by him/herself, locked onto a specific goal with nothing but the clothes on their back, the surroundings and the ground they're sprinting on.

Hill Sprints are of a different animal than other forms of Strength Training or Interval Training. The hill fights you and wants you to not be able to tackle it's angle or dimensions. It doesn't want you to succeed but you push on anyway. It can be intimidating and it can even speak to you saying "you can't beat me, I'll make you feel like you're dying inside" or something along the lines of "Try me and find out what it feels like to know you need everything just to even get pass me by a few yards." It doesn't discriminate, it doesn't care where you come from, it doesn't matter what color, creed or if you're a world champion, it will beat you to a metaphorical pulp if you let it get to you. 

As of late, I've completed about 70 Sprints so far in my training and it doesn't get any easier. I've had to reduce the number of sprints because I did sense something wrong after doing too many of them too soon and that hill was laughing in my face. I still managed them but I was going back home on fumes and my body was in shock along with shot to shit. When I reduced the number to 5 sprints instead of 10 per session, things felt better, I felt stronger both during and after. The hill taught me a valuable lesson and that's to never underestimate its ability to kick your ass and ravage your ignorance. I don't sprint at 100% cause that would only be a few seconds and my legs would be shot, I sprint just hard enough to go for 10-15 seconds to hit that sweet spot. That gives me the opportunity to show that hill that I'm listening to not only it but to my body and finding that balance of going hard but not to the point of possibly getting hurt. 

The progression is simple and I nearly found out the hard way that simplistic progression and not all out high number of sprints is the way to go. I'm not Walter Payton or a Shamrock or Brock Lesnar, I can only be me. Right now I'm in the final week of doing 5 Sprints per session, by next week I'll be going after 6 for a max of 4 weeks and then add 1 more and so on and so forth. I don't bring my cell, I don't bring a backpack or water bottle with me, just the clothes I wear and the shoes on my feet to get me there. Walk to the hill, do my sprints, walk home and that's my workout. Depending on how many sprints I do, door to door takes about an hour or so from the time it takes to get get there, sprint and go back. There's beautiful trees, a cool park nearby and nobody bothers me unless they honk their horns driving by to cheer me on or give me a thumbs up. It is seriously one of the friendliest places I've ever been in. Most of the time with people coming by, I just nod and have us both be on our way. 

The hill I run on is a hill where my grandmother-in-law lives next to and it's a hill that leads up to the mountain where my Father-In-Law lives. Beautiful hill to even just climb up and there's a little trail on the side of the mountain that overlooks the road leading to the lake. Nobody bothers anybody, very civil and very little of the time you see an asshole drive by or some nutjob trying to see how fast he can go in his pickup with a MAGA Sticker & Gun Rack on the window. Always careful where I'm at and aware of any cars coming by cause the lane is barely small enough for a bike. When I walk back down to recover, I shift over to the ditch on the side. 

It's not the steepest hill but it is fun to sprint on and every now and then, you get some deer close by just sitting or looking on. If you like Hill Sprints and have a hill near by, use it to the best of your abilities, just be careful depending where it is. Keep being amazingly awesome and hope you have a great start to the week.