Cables, Step Ups And Sweat Oh My

 If you don't get the Wizard Of Oz reference in the title, we can't be friends. JK LOL. The other night I did a workout that can virtually be done anywhere and any time that you wouldn't expect to be a combo of. It combines Upper Body Strength Training and Lower Body Conditioning while also developing incredible Core Stability and Power along with some Isometric Components.

I figured I wanted to test my strength somehow so I put the heaviest cables that was possible for me to do and used a style like the 5x5 system in weight training with supersetting to really tackle the body. I used the Lifeline Fitness TNT Cables at 180 lbs Resistance (2 Magentas /40 lbs each and 1 Black/100 lbs). Just trying to stabilize my body on some of the exercises were tough because you have to use your whole body otherwise you might be pushed back hard. 

TNT Cable And Step Up Supersets

Curls - 5x5 per arm (10 total each set) = 50 Reps

Step Ups - 5x20 (10 Per Leg) = 100 Reps

Pulldowns - 5x5 = 25 Reps

Step Ups - 5x20 (10 Per Leg) = 100 Reps

Rows - 5x5 = 25 Reps

Step Ups - 5x20 (10 Per Leg) = 100 Reps

Chest Press - 5x5 = 25 Reps

Step Ups - 5x20 (10 Per Leg) = 100 Reps

One-Arm Rows - 5x5 Per Arm (10 Total Per Set) = 50 Reps

Step Ups - 5x20 (10 Per Leg) = 100 Reps

Totals: 175 Reps On Cables and 500 Step Ups

This was exactly as written in my workout log. I have no idea how long it took me, I rested when needed and wrote down numbers and kept going without even thinking of quitting. The rows and chest presses were the toughest cause with heavy cables like that, the stabilization had to be flawless because if I even relaxed a little, I would be pulled/pushed back into my door hard and I didn't have the plan of getting injured during this. You can do this workout with lighter cables (which I recommend if you're not used to the TNT Cables) and it would still be effective. I might do this workout again with just the 100 lb cable and go without rest to really test my conditioning. 

Setting the Step Ups aside, I put my wife through the same exercises with the cables (much lighter of course). It's great training for when you travel and want to get something going without needing to go to the gym. The Step Ups may be trickier but if you can find some hotel steps or stadium steps that would be awesome too. You can substitute the step ups with Hindu Squats or other leg exercises. This will have you sweating in no time and if you use lighter cables and reduce the rest time to none, you're looking at a hell of a cardio workout along with building strength at the same time. Try it out and see how you do.

Here are two new videos I put up on Youtube....1st one is a compilation I made of some of my most recent videos and a video where I hold a 20 lb slam ball in a horse stance for 3+ Minutes. 

Losing Weight Because Of Isometrics?

 I weighed in this morning at 256.2, I'm now just mere inches from my first (semi) goal of losing 10 pounds. I'll put up pics soon and I do see little changes and it's mainly due to Isometrics. Using the Isometric Power Belt, I keep somewhat of a series of exercises in a routine but always doing different exercises in addition to the routine or doing something completely different altogether.

I like to do Curls, Upright Rows, Deadlifts, Overhead Presses and Bow & Arrow Pulls as part of my routine and switch them around to avoid doing the same order over and over. Some of the other Isometric Exercises that I love to do is doing pulldowns, pulling as if I'm ripping a phonebook or pulling on a lawn mower, Bench Press type exercise, step up Isometrics to build strength in the quads, calves and knees and my personal favorite squat; The Zercher Iso Squat. The workouts don't last very long and only do them a few times a week and if I feel like my recovery isn't doing good, I change it up and do things on other days and do no more than a couple to 3 Iso Workouts a week.

My intention was not to really lose weight and dealing with other things in my life as of late, I'm utilizing more of the Isometrics instead of what I normally do. It's worked out for the most part and the Iso Workouts have been a huge blessing. Life throws you curveballs and you never see them coming so you adapt and learn what you can do despite the bullshit that happens. When I got more in tuned to the Iso Workouts, small changes were happening that I wasn't getting in a while, I was seeing more definition, feeling lighter and stronger in the other workouts I was doing and as you have guessed, losing weight. I'm still in pretty good shape as far as conditioning and muscular endurance and strength were concerned but the Isometrics sort of enhanced this attributes more lately than what I'm used to.

With the countless exercises you can do with Isometrics, only a fraction of that you really only need to do but there are so many ways to experiment and finding the right ones or the ones that challenge your weaknesses and make them your strength. One thing I like to add to the belt is a wooden dowel that I can slide on and do Isometrics that way similar to how Bruce Lee used a chain with a handle to build his strength with Isometrics. Doing the Curls and Deadlifts really tackle the muscles, tendons and ligaments when I use the dowel and feel it way more in my abdominals than just using the belt. Because of this and my consistency with Isometrics, I'm seeing far greater definition in my abdominals muscles and these days I rarely ever do a sit-up. 

The weight loss and fat loss has been a great part of the journey with Isometrics but that's not my end goal. It's more about building strength from as many angles as possible and being able to handle other tasks without having to worry about getting injured. I don't like talking about my goals for fear of saying something and then I just drop everything, I've been known to do that, what I will say is my journey is more about building resilience and conditioning my body to where it wouldn't be easy to hurt me and build strong tendons for the long run. Ever since that messed up accident, I'm driven to build the best possible strength in making my bones the strongest they can be in the safest manner and develop almost an indestructible structure.   

Labor Workouts For Conditioning And Long Term Strength

 Ever Hay Baled? Worked a Sledgehammer for hours on end? Carried sacks of rice or potatoes? Walked with buckets of water or concrete? If answered yes to any of these, you've done some form of Manual Labor in your lifetime. I do believe laborers are a foundation within all societies regardless of the country and are incredible at what they do when it comes to the dirty work. Throughout my years of moving family and doing a few jobs here and there, hauling and working various labor is tough ass work. It puts a little more testosterone in your system and gets you plenty of time outdoors. 

I knew guys that worked labor jobs up to 12 hours a day or more and some of them were the strongest dudes around. Even women who work labor jobs are bad ass if not more than a lot of men. Although it is hard work, it can take a toll on your body if you've done it for a number of years and very rarely you ever see a laborer who is in damn good shape and not having as many injuries or a broken down body. 

Every few workouts or so, I do some training in tribute to those hard working men and women who have paved the way for help shaping countries all over the world. I take my 70 lb Kettlebell and do one handed carries around either the garage or my driveway for revolutions to build grip strength and core stability. Carrying a total of 1000 lbs or more is a hell of a workout and it doesn't take long either but it'll give you an appreciation for what these people do day in and out.

Another great workout was one I did the other day where I would pick up and shoulder carry my 20 lb Death Star Slam Ball and do 20 step ups with it and repeated that 10 times shouldering a total of 200 lbs and 200 Step Ups. It's quick but can be humbling because the more times you pick up a weight even as light (and awkward) as 20 lbs, the heavier it can get and you have to use your whole body. Imagine carrying up bags of sand or boxes of fruit up flights of stairs, it can be crazy tough. 

Most of these workouts are pretty short but they work everything and you make every minute count as you haul ass and build that strength because you never know when you'll need it for when someone needs help moving, stacking stuff and putting in time to do some good for your fellow man. One of the exercises I had my wife do was picking up and putting down the 20 lb Slam Ball a total of 25 times, the equivalent to lifting a total of 500 lbs. That may not sound much but this was after working an 8 hr shift while driving an hour to and from work. 

Step Ups are a hell of an exercise for building that leg conditioning for various tasks and having endurance that can go for a good period of time. It has helped me in hiking, swimming and doing workouts I normally don't do and can be tough as hell at times. I can go 30 minutes or more if I put my mind to it and do 1000 Step Ups in an hour or less if I really pushed myself. I'm always up for helping someone if they ask for it and do what I can and want to be in good condition to make that happen. I'm not perfect nor am I the most coordinated at times but I do what I can as long as I can when it comes down to it.

Thank a laborer when you can and do some training that may not look like much to the average person or gym rat but to experience even for a moment what hard labor can feel like. If you really want to understand how laborers are freakishly strong, seek out Slim The Hammerman. 

To all laborers out there, keep kicking ass and thank you for what you do. 

Results Using Isometrics As A Foundation

 My weight has always had a habit of fluctuating like a lot of people, so consistent weight loss and/or fat loss wasn't always easy. That is until Isometrics started becoming more of a priority. For about a year now I've kept my weight between 260-265, still had good agility, endurance and plenty of strength along with decent conditioning. I still do Animal Moves and use other implements to stay in shape but what has given me more of a fat burning edge and putting on definition has been Isometrics on a consistent basis.

Off and on for a decade and a half I would go through these phases of training and was always fascinated with Isometrics and practiced from hand balancing, hanging, push-up holds on my fists, wall pushes, wall sits, using a strap, bodyweight, holding weight in a horse stance and muscle control. With the consistency as of late especially within a month, not only have I lost weight but starting see more consistent muscular definition, the way I move and my stamina. 

These have been my results as of now......

Like I said, normally I've kept up my weight between 260-265, these current photos are at a BW of 257.4, under 260 for the first time in a long time. Because of mainly Isometrics, I've accomplished a weight loss and fat loss I didn't expect to have. My eating habits haven't really changed and only eat when I'm hungry. Other than playing around with my workouts, my biggest recreation is either going on hikes or going for walks around the neighborhood. If I could keep this up, maybe it's possible to be under 250. Who knows?

Isometrics are a key component to aiding in fat loss especially with certain intensities. When it comes to a huge fat loss and weight loss with the results of Isometrics is Steve Justa. I don't know how much he weighs these days after doing his Isometric DVDs 6 years ago but back then he was around 206-210 I believe and looking like a beast with strength many would kill to have. Isometrics don't make you just looking good, they can give you strength from angles other methods can't touch. They can help aid in preventing injuries, strengthen the bone structure and even rehab certain areas of the body. 

I use the Isometric Power Belt from Bronze Bow Publishing as my ultimate tool for Isometrics but that might not be in your budget, so if you're looking to save a few bucks maybe the WorldFit Iso Trainer may be more suited for you if that's your interest. If you're really looking to save money, just use your bodyweight and use the environment around you, you can still get in stupid shape and build incredible strength. Karl Gotch had a saying that said "always work your muscles from every possible angle", Isometrics applies to this in very high regards. 

However you do Isometrics, make them a priority and see how far you can go and who knows, with consistency and decent eating habits, you can get shredded and possibly look like Hugh Jackman from The Wolverine (I said possibly, not guaranteed). 

Zercher Squats....The Benefits

 The Zercher Squat which refers to the location of the barbell during a lift. Holding the bar within the crook of the Elbows and can either be used in a Squat, Isometric Hold, carry or even a deadlift variation. These can strengthen the core muscles, activate the glutes and quads, work the biceps and improve on the Front Squat. The inventor of this Lift was Ed Zercher who was a strongman based out of St. Louis in the 30's and 40's.

The person that really got this lift going in the new millennium is Strongman Bud Jeffries bar none. His poundages in this lift whether partial or full range is absolutely mind blowing. A partial of over 900 pounds and at full doing 600+ lbs. I started noticing how powerful he has become as he kept up with this lift and although i'm not a lifter, I can appreciate the level he has risen up on. What if there was a different route to make this a good form of strength training to build strong tendons in the legs?

When I do the squat in my Isometric Workouts, I always felt something wasn't right, when I use my Isometric Power Belt, I would put the strap wrapped at the back of my neck, step on the strap and do Isometric Squats. It's good and can be done either with high intensity for 7-12 seconds or at a lower intensity for a minute or more but it didn't feel comfortable in the sense where it was pulling more on my neck and not doing enough for the legs. I switched it to where I mimicked a Zercher Squat and not only did i feel stronger but I also felt naturally comfortable in how I applied it. I can make it feel like a deadlift and Squat at the same time or one or the other, it's weird to explain.

What I've noticed about Bud's Zercher Squat Lifts (Partial or otherwise), his strength seems different, more powerful than even his Anderson Squats (Squats starting at the bottom) even though his poundages are much higher, to me he looks like he can go faster in his sprints when he utilizes the Zercher but that's just my observation and I could be wrong but either way, the strength in his bone structure is just phenomenal especially when his tendons and ligaments seem almost impossible to break, he just continues to amaze at what he is capable of and sending a message that if it's possible for him, why can't we?

In the Isometric Zercher Variation with the strap, my knees feel more in tuned with that hold than the squat itself and I feel my tendon strength has increased. When I did 1000 Step Ups on Tuesday, I finished in 51:38, a new PR for me and I felt not only stronger and had better endurance but my pace felt faster. I've only done the Isometric Zercher a few times but yet felt a major difference in my speed and stamina when I went on a hike and the Step Ups. It has put greater strength on my lower back and powers up my quads like crazy along with strengthening my knees. 

Between the lift that Bud does and what I've read on others and the Isometric Variation I do with the Strap, I see a ton of benefits with this exercise, it builds strength from a different point of view and as a lift, may be even safer than regular Heavy Squats. It's not just a leg exercise, it hits practically everything more so on the arms, core and obviously the legs. I find it safer to do than the squat and I believe can be used as a source of rehabbing the joints on the knees. 

If you have a strap long enough to mimic the Zercher for Isometrics, I highly recommend you do them as an alternative to the regular squat and see how they benefit you. If you're a lifter, go for these but I highly suggest you use more of a power rack with this lift especially if you're a beginner, even as an advanced lifter these are awesome to work on and is a damn cool lift to see if you're hitting heavy weight. 

Building A Suit Of Armor Using Isometrics

 

Isometrics isn't a big mainstream method for a reason and it's mainly because many see it as inferior to other methods or have boring entities that is completely misunderstood. The truth is, Isometrics are a forgotten art of exercise that strongmen of the past used to not only crush plateaus but to help perform better in certain acts such as Steel Bending, taking shots to the stomach or twisting horseshoes (look up Alexander Zass and The Mighty Atom). 

It's slowly making a comeback but for reasons that have nothing to do with certain aspects of strength, conditioning or performance (even fewer today make these attributes a priority) but to shed fat, look far leaner and have a more approach to bodybuilding. The seekers of strength and/or conditioning rely heavily on strengthening beyond the muscles but more of the tendons, ligaments and joints to help protect them from injuries and utilize their power for purely functional reasons. Isometrics help develop not just leaner muscle but muscle density and hardness that is tough to match. 

Isometrics help develop a kind of suit of armor for your body to help prevent injuries as much as possible. Steve Justa was heavy into weights and picking up odd objects so heavy, an inch off the ground was the best he can do (partials really) and became so heavy himself it started tearing him up and having type 2 diabetes really solidified where his health was going. After focusing more on Isometrics than anything else, it helped get his health back in order and rarely gets injured these days. With the endless ways to do Isometrics, having a strong body is one thing but to have strength that keeps you from breaking apart is a whole other ball game.

Look at it this way from a comic book perspective; Wolverine's entire bone structure is laced with adamantium and has a remarkable power to heal much faster than the typical human; when you practice Isometrics, your bone structure develops strength that tends to be more of an anomaly than anything else and gives you that extra juice of power within your system that makes injuries less likely to happen and to heal at a greater rate. Now this isn't to say to test that theory in stupid stunts or to see if someone can try to break your arm with a bat, injuries happen but the less chance of that happening if your structure is strengthened and maintained properly. This is a perspective of the inside of the body.

From a perspective of the outside of the body, let's look at it from Batman's Suit; in various films seen such as the Chris Nolan Batman Trilogy, Batman V Superman and The Dark Knight Returns, his suit has armor that is extremely difficult to penetrate and helps him keep fighting and keep pushing the limits of his endurance and will to keep going. The only villain that broke him (literally) was Bane and that was a 1-1000 odds of happening with any other villain. Practicing Isometrics can help up the odds of breaking the body from the outside as well and help you fight off certain aspects of injuries to the shoulders, back, legs and wrists and develop greater durability and endurance. Now this isn't meaning to go out and fight and test your durability and see how long you last while hurt. Bruises happen, scraped knees happen and we can't completely prevent an ankle injury but with proper training, the odds are in more of your favor than against you. You can create your own suit of armor.

The more you strengthen your structure, the stronger your armor is. We can't always prevent injuries from happening but we can definitely up the score in our favor. People like Steve Justa, Bud Jeffries, Logan Christopher, Steve Maxwell, Batman O'Brien and others have done and practiced Isometrics along with other methods to the degree where injuries are less likely to occur yet can do things with weights and other things that baffle the human mind and can do them at a superhuman level. Who's to say you can't do the same thing? Isometrics are hard but that doesn't mean their inferior, they can do things for your body other methods can't come close to touching and your conditioning will soar when you work them with intention, safety and focus. 

7 Seconds To A Perfect Body

Indestructible Body 

WorldFit Isometric Strap

Extreme Power With Isometrics

Iron Isometrics

It's Not Just The Minutes.....It's What Happens In Those Minutes

 

How profound is that? To justify a moment beyond reason as to how great moments happen either in the blink of an eye, or the minutes/seconds leading up to something glorious with incredible results. Not just in the minutes but life as well when something happens or continues to happen. Not many of us truly understand the gratification of what happens either as we experience it as an onlooker or experiencing the moments right in the thick of it. 

When it comes to working out, many don't completely understand what they're experiencing. It's mainly just going through the motions and doing something just for the sake of saying yeah I did this or that so what? Yeah we can just go through the motions and not have a second thought of anything else, but where's the fun in that? We all have the opportunity to experience things in the moments we participate in and for one moment out of thousands, we can experience something so astounding and awesome that it also has the chance of never being duplicated.

In those minutes of moving like a wild animal or setting a new PR, I've learned to cherish those minutes and bask in the vast power of what results come of it. With my Wild Workouts, I get to imagine as I move what it would be like to be the most powerful animal in the universe. When I went for over 82 minutes in one workout, it felt like I was invincible, the beauty to continuously train like an animal for that long was one of the best workouts in my life, I felt like I could take on the world. When I first fell into a bridge and kicked over, I was so elated and full of happiness, I just couldn't contain myself; Logan Christopher was in that moment with me as he was training me in that move. All that hard work paid off and got to celebrate like I hit a grand slam to win the World Series, it felt that glorious to me.

There are days where I don't give a second thought what I'm doing but when those moments arise, the reactions may be different but the end result is that I got to do something that feels amazingly awesome. I don't look for those glorious moments in my workouts, I just love to train, its when they come out of nowhere that makes it all that much more incredible. The first time I did over 1000 Squats, it felt like a weight came off my shoulders because in that moment, I knew something amazing would occur later because it signified my hard work after months of rehab on my own learning how to walk again after breaking both my legs. I nearly cried when that happened.

Cherish those moments and the things that happen during your training will show what you have put into it. You never know what you're capable of until something comes out of nowhere. It's not just the end result, it's the lead up to the result that makes it all worthwhile and getting to do something that could never be experienced again. It's not just the minutes, it's what happens in those minutes that become the greatest experience in your life. 

Isometric Horse Stance Holding Weight

 There are countless exercises that can be done with Isometrics, some are hard, others are fairly easy but in all fairness, Isometrics are a key component to overall strength, conditioning and durability. Every now and then, I like doing Horse Stance type holds and either just hold it or use certain implements and either hold with the weight or move the weight in the Horse Stance. This builds strength in a unique way and combining movement and Isometrics makes up for building unusual strength.

One of the things I have demoed was holding a Horse Stance and walking my hands up and down Big Bertha (my 59 lb Sledgehammer) at the same time. This builds grip strength, agility, reflexes, leg power and core strength. I call it Thor Catches Loki, the exercise itself is something I learned from Strongman Kevin Wikse from his former series where he utilized strength programs based on Mythical Gods. The Horse Stance was an add on that I came up with on my own and damn it's brutal. 

Recently, I did an exercise that I have never tried before and that was holding out (at near lockout) a 15 lb. Indian Club in each hand while holding a Horse Stance. This felt extremely awkward and just using strength to hold them out was hard enough but to balance them took a lot more Core than I expected and it was felt in my shoulders, my forearms and my fingers. I held it for over a minute which I felt was a great accomplishment since I've never attempted an exercise like that. 

The Horse Stance is a staple for many who practice qigong and other internal arts methods and is a foundational exercise for those like the Shaolin Monks. It's a simple hold and has no impact on the joints but it's also a hard exercise when you start to hold it for an extended period of time. Some people can barely hold it for 30 seconds yet others like those of the Shaolin can hold it for hours, it's ridiculous. 

Practice the Horse Stance and see if you can go more than a minute without shaking. The longer you hold it, the more your entire body comes into play. It strengthens the knees, works the feet and puts long-term strength on the quads and hamstrings.  

Sun Bathing And Mace Swinging

 Training outside is such an awesome way to get fresh air, feel the warm sun on your skin and moving your body among the blue sky. Mace Swinging is an ancient form of exercise Middle Eastern Wrestlers used for centuries to get in crazy shape for their sport and utilize not just strength and muscle building but also working on mobility, stretching and developing coordination. 

There are quite a few exercises you can do with the Mace but the two main exercises you'll see people do are the 360 Swing and the 10-2's. These main exercise lay the foundation for building well rounded strength and conditioning as it involves pushing, pulling and rotating. In India, there are some competitions on who can swing the most reps with a certain weight. Some Maces weigh more than 60 pounds yet very few can even manage a single rep. 

For the most part, it's best to swing the Mace outside where there's more than enough space to swing and be in control of your surroundings. It is possible to swing Indoors but you need a ceiling more than high enough so it won't hit anything and to never do them around household objects. I always train the Mace outside and just a few exercises will do the trick. Doing no more than 20-30 minutes you can still cook up a great pump in the forearms, working your shoulders, obliques, the trunk and your Core. Right now my Mace is around 25 lbs but wouldn't do more than a couple hundred reps total, it can get brutal sometimes and if you sweaty palms, just trying to grip that sucker is a challenge. 

To learn more about the practices of Mace Swinging, check out Rik Brown, one of the most authoritative figures on the method today. 

Here's a Demo of my swing style doing about 50 Reps while bathing in the sun. Great exercise and a beautiful way to get a good sweat going. 

 

Learning To Shut Out The World As You Train

 I have been training on my own since I was 21 years old. When I first learned how to walk again, I had to learn how to concentrate hard enough to where everything else around me didn't exist. It does get lonely at times but it taught me how to be self-reliant and to challenge myself not to let anyone else help me unless I was desperate enough. When I was in college, yeah I worked out around people and gave them a helping hand as well as learning from them but I was at my very best when I put myself into that mode of "it's just me and nothing else."

Training by yourself has its own rewards and you learn more about yourself than when training alongside others. The only time I have ever truly felt comfortable training with others was other strongmen and not feeling like an outcast or someone who didn't belong. By myself, it becomes a mental game more than anything. The cons really of training alone is that if you're stuck or you get hurt, you're on your own and have to figure out how to save your own ass; it's not the same as being in a gym, they're there to make sure you don't do anything stupid and if you're training by yourself and do something stupid, there are those close by.

Unless there's a training session with my wife, my workouts are nothing but me, some music and whatever I end up doing. I take my training seriously to the point where I shut everything out around me and put on some music and don't stop until I'm ready to call it a day. Some days, my mind runs ragged and I can't always concentrate (we're human, it happens) but most days, I just want to be left alone to do my thing and take care of me. That's one of the true benefits of working out is to give time to yourself and do things that put you into a state of mind where you're in control and you get to choose your challenges and schemes.

On those days where I do up to 1000 Step-ups, I put on music and just go, nothing in the world matters but being in those moments of exercising not just physically but getting in tuned with your inner self. With those Animal Workouts, before every animal I move as, for a split moment, I visualize myself transforming into it and believe that it is the strongest and most powerful it can be. I shut out everything except the music and the movement, I make it feel as if they are one with me. 

What training alone has really taught me was to be open with yourself and understand the only competition you have is just you and making the most of your abilities. I get to pick and choose what I get to do, I can make the choice to do something easy or extremely hard and what pace I get to go as. I'm in no competition with anyone, there's always going to be someone out there faster and stronger than me but not everyone can do what I can do. I figured out on my own how to develop my own program, how to go hard when it's the right time and when to back off. 

I rarely have let anyone coach me, really only a few have ever worked with me and showed me the ropes, everything else I have read, watched and mimicked. I have literally taught myself to shut out the world, some days are not as easy as others but my style is what I live by and what it has given me. I would love to train people but as I've gotten older, I realize that my style of exercise and my way of training someone isn't always compatible with someone else who wants to train. 

When you can shut things out and just focus on the task at hand, you'll start to understand what it takes to make things happen. I've pushed myself for so many years especially in the beginning because for the most part, other than learning a thing or two from dear friends, I had no one to rely on but myself. When I'm training, two things will happen if you try to jump in, you're either going to try to keep up or get kicked out, I don't allow anyone to work out with me unless they're prepared to work, I don't give a damn who it is. I'll be having fun with some things but my pace, my attitude and my dedication is about as serious as a heart attack.

Train according to your style, not everyone is willing to train by themselves, if you're at your best with partners than have at it but if you're on your own, only let in who is worthy and shut everything else out until you're done. 

National Geographic And Fitness

 

Ever since I got Disney+ for me and my wife (yes we are Disney Geeks, deal with it LOL), the majority of the time I spend on it is watching National Geographic, specifically the animal specials. I've always been fascinated by Animals ever since I was a kid but didn't really give it the real attention I do now. There aren't too many Zoos around here and the closest to an Animal Sanctuary I've been to is called Wolf People up near Sandpoint here in Idaho where there's a lady that educates people and raises Wolves on a piece of land. The last and only time I was there was when my friend Bud Jeffries came up here for a few days and he was doing some shows up here and stayed at my house. 

I've also seen some wildlife up close quite a few times around here and when we go to Tahoe for our family vacations. A few bears walking along near our cabins, deer constantly around our house feasting on our lawn and bushes, a couple of moose while camping and wild turkeys roaming. These shows are just a lot of fun to watch and get educated on the vast habits of wild animals. My personal favorites are on Primates (Gorillas, Bonobos and Chimps mostly) and the strength they possess is just inspiring. 

Because of my love of Animal Movements, these specials or at least an episode or two just make me want to get up and crawl around the house or have a little workout out in the Dungeon. The pure and natural aspects of moving like a wild animal pulls me in like the Tractor Beam did to the Millenium Falcon in Star Wars: A New Hope, it puts me into a state of mind where the freedom to roam is the best option. There's nothing wrong with doing stationary movements whether it's weightlifting, bodyweight, cables, club swinging or just doing Isometrics but the ability to move as animal-like as possible opens up another world of Fitness Potential.

The longest time I ever did an animal workout was 1 hr 22 min. and haven't gone anywhere near that long since but it was fun and never knew I went that long until I saw the stopwatch on my phone. I wanted to see how long I can go. Normally now I don't go near more than 30 and on average I do about 10-20 minutes depending on what I'm feeling that day and my energy levels. It is by far the most fun training I've ever done. All I do really is play my Animal Dice Game and just go. Having done literally in the 10's of thousands of Steps/Reps of Animal Movements, it's safe to say it's my all-time favorite training method. I love Combat Conditioning and doing Step-Ups and playing around with a Hammer and Mace but Animals are truly my go-to method of exercise bar none.

Watching what animals can do is an experience that truly shapes the way I look at certain things about life. Most people today don't appreciate the value of the Wild and what it means to be strong and fit in order to survive. We live in a world where we have become accustomed to showing off our bods, eating more and moving less, confused what is the best exercise program to do, sharing memes more than ideas and believing Bodybuilders pumped full of roids and supplements are the way to health. You don't need to be 5% body fat to be healthy and you don't need to look like Frank Zane or Arnold but it is important to use our bodies for long-term well being and be able to move with less chances of getting injured. 

Wildlife is unpredictable, there's no question about that, some of the most deadliest animals sometimes become friendly with other species you wouldn't expect. Animals do whatever it takes to protect their young although often if an offspring is too weak, it gets left behind which hurts to see and hear but if it means a way of needing to survive, you just see it unfold. The point is, movement is life but not to the point where you feel broken at a young age and overwhelming yourself with stress. We can't control what happens around us at times but we can choose how to adapt to it and overcome the odds.

Take the opportunity to move like a wild animal, not for the sake of just exercise but to feel the body from a different perspective and feel what it's like to be free and use your imagination. Imagine the results you can achieve that goes beyond weight loss and muscle building, imagine the possibilities of doing tasks with greater stamina and strength and what you can harness when you have to use your brain in order to work the movements. 

10 Minute Step Up Challenge

 Care for a challenge today? It's one exercise and all you need is a sturdy step stool, bench or the second step of a flight of stairs. The challenge is to do as many Step Ups or at least keep a solid pace and go for 10 minutes non stop. That sounds easy doesn't it, after all it's only 10 minutes right? 

For most, doing this exercise is extremely tough and for good reason; it's a tough exercise and it challenges your cardio big time. It builds incredible stamina, strengthens the muscles in all of the legs, doesn't pound on the joints so it is a much safer option than long distance running and it's a hell of a conditioner if you're an athlete or a laborer or just someone who wants to get in shape. There are great benefits to this exercise.

A lot of people today don't realize what it means to be fit; not just to look like a million bucks but to use your fitness in other endeavors. Some work out to pass the time, others don't care and just go through the motions and there are some that push themselves to the brink of death. When it comes to this exercise, it doesn't take long before you're huffing and puffing. Test it out yourself for even 5 minutes and tell me it doesn't do anything.

Here's a story that makes this exercise so effective, that it made one guy leave the gym without saying a word because he couldn't keep up: One of the most legendary wrestlers of the 1970's was Bob Backlund who became the second longest running champion in the WWE. He became an advocate of the Step Up and the Ab Wheel and made them the foundation for his unrivaled strength and conditioning. One time, a marathoner challenged him in the Step Up because it looked such an easy exercise and if he can run 26.2 miles, doesn't seem much of a challenge right? Bob accepted and told the guy to be prepared to work very hard, after about 20 minutes, the guy gives up and storms out of the gym, never to be seen again. That should tell you flat out how badass this exercise is.

This isn't some ricky dink exercise, it will test your lungs and put on some good functional muscle. Ladies, if you're looking to tone up and shape your butt, this exercise can do that for you. If you can get passed ten minutes without dying, it's a good indication that you're in pretty good shape. You can vary the reps, when I do my workouts with this exercise, I set my watch and do 12 reps per leg, that works for me. When I want to really challenge myself, I'll do 1000 Reps using a deck of cards and keep going with little to no rest. I'm very thankful for this exercise. It feels great on my knees and ankles because although I've done thousands of squats in the past, when I do squats, I feel more tension in those areas because of the rod in my shin and the pins in my ankles. I don't feel tension whatsoever in the Step Up, I do feel my legs working but it makes me feel like the Rod and pins aren't there.

Are you up for the challenge? You think you can go 10 minutes doing this? See what you can do. If you can't do 10 minutes yet, that's ok. You can build up to it doing various sets and reps and taking as little rest as possible each workout until you don't have to rest at all. For safety sake, if you're using a step stool, make sure it's sturdy and can hold a great deal of weight. Most stools can hold up well over 200 lbs. My step stool holds up to 300 lbs. Don't go Speedy Gonzales on this exercise unless you've been at it long enough and you have a good sense of balance. I made the mistake of going like the Flash and ended up tripping and hurting myself twice, I never made it a third time since. I like to keep a steady pace because quite frankly I don't need to sprint on that thing, I feel awesome just getting my heart pumping from the pace I do. 

Do what works for you and do your best to focus on your breathing as well. You'll be huffing and puffing as it is doing this but if you can control your breathing as best as possible, you can go for a much longer time. My first 1000 Reps, I had to take several breaks because those cards will never tell you whats coming. My second time, took less breaks and was feeling pretty good, the third time, I felt like I blasted through it and was in the zone. It becomes a mental game after several minutes cause once you hit 100-200, the mind becomes more of a target than your body. Be sure to find a Stool or Bench that doesn't go past your navel point when you step up; you don't want to overuse the hip joint because this is a full leg exercise not one to overstress the hips. 

Here's a video of me doing the 10 Min Step Up Challenge. 

Some Days Are Short And Others Go Longer

 Although good training results come from consistency, we can't always control the days we do train. Some workouts last shorter than others and other days we'll go longer than normal because the energy is there, our minds are clearer and we just love to keep going. 

A good mini workout on certain days is better than nothing at all. You can do a quick superset of squats and push-ups for 5-10 minutes, you can grease the groove (spread out throughout the day). Rest and Recovery are important no doubt but being active goes a long way as well. Depending on the type of work you do, some people have more time, others only have a certain window of opportunity but how often will they take it? 

We train according to our time frames, our energy, our motivations and what goals we want to strive for. Some talk so much but don't do a whole lot, others don't need to say a damn thing and go after it but overall; what puts you into a state where you want to make things happen?

I'm not a routine guy as I have said in the past, I don't know why I can't stay with a consistent program very long. Maybe it just doesn't come natural to me, my brain processes things differently than most people and I go by my instincts and intuition. Some days I'll have the urge to do 500 Hindu Squats, others go for 1000 Step Step Ups, another day might be a circuit or go for a swim. I go on what my body tells me and how far my mind is willing to go. Here's another example: I tried for a good period doing hundreds of Step Ups a day and so far tackled 1000 Reps 3 times in succession but the challenge didn't feel tough anymore after a short while and didn't feel satisfied or that I accomplished anything. 

At times I feel, why the hell am I really doing this? To prove that I can keep up with others, that i'm in the same league as someone smaller or bigger than me? That despite brain damage that has surrounded me practically my whole existence I should be in the same company as a Professional Athlete? What is really the actual point? The truth is, although I have accomplished so much in my fitness life and it has carried over to things that have helped others in various ways plus I wouldn't be the same person if I went a different route after my accident, the only person I need to prove is myself. The same can be said for anyone. You are your own competition in the reality of no matter how strong or fit you are, there's always someone stronger, healthier, more motivated, more driven, less than fit as you and not everyone is going to love what you're doing. 

Some workouts whether short or long may not always appeal to you or you won't always have a happy place for them in your heart but if you made a choice to do something rather than take a load off, you're already ahead of the majority who don't have a clue to where they can go. You are capable when you push yourself no matter how small and if you have to change things up, do so. Find a challenge, utilize your knowledge and be wise enough to understand your good days, your bad days, short or long. Learn to compromise with yourself. 

Stronger Lower Arms To Kill Tendonitis

 

During my high school days, my biggest form of exercise was weightlifting during P.E between my sophomore year to my senior year. I didn't know very much on how to stay limber and supple, I was stiff as a board most of the time and as an athlete, none of it really mounted to much. For two years I did Shot Put and Discus, mainly to carry on the tradition of my father because that's what he did. I never got as good as he did and because of my lack of discipline and not caring as much about my health at the time, I developed injuries in my shoulders and mainly my lower arms from the elbows to the wrists that also developed tendonitis and joint problems.

It wasn't until I discovered Combat Conditioning that I needed to really fix a lot of areas in my body. Even during my gym days, I had bad knees, woke up so stiff everything hurt as I moved and very little core strength let alone any real strength that lasted. Later on I found out about the Primate Power Super Strength System and wanted to try something new. I did get stronger and became far more limber than I ever did as a teenager but the fun really began when I learned how to move like a Primate or in this case Apes and Monkeys. 

The hanging exercises were just awesome on my elbows and shoulders and although I completely killed my tendonitis, something just needed that extra oomph to really tackle the problems I had when I was younger. I was determined to have the strongest lower arms not just by muscles but also making my tendons and ligaments incredibly powerful especially since I was also into Bending Steel. Moving like an Ape really opened my eyes to what could be an exciting adventure into full on animal movements. Walking/Jumping with the weight on my knuckles, hanging for a good period of time and making my fingers feel like solid bones, Primate Power gave me the strength and conditioning I truly craved for. 

Because of this course, it made my fall in love with Animal Exercises, challenged me in the most fun ways and made me stronger in my strongman feats and in Gymnastics. For nearly a year I did gymnastics at my local college and was the biggest guy in the class outweighing the next guy at 30-40 pounds (I was around 210 at that this time) and could hang pretty well at the horizontal bar and could do a good amount of pullups and dips on the rings. I wasn't any near as athletic or graceful as the other students but they knew what kind of strength I had. 

To this day, I've never had a severe injury to my lower arms. If I ever did get hurt, it didn't last long and healed pretty quickly and could Arm Wrestle with some strong guys. It's not just about developing strength to do good feats, it could also help when you're saving someone's life or your own. If you're in a fight and have strong tendons in your hands and wrists, you have a little advantage and have some good knockout power. If you're a wrestler, you can develop some serious gripping strength and your opponent will feel it, put them in a submission hold and they'll scream for mercy before either tapping or passing out. 

Get your hands on Primate Power and harness the power and might of the Ferocious Ape/Monkey. 

Felt Like Going Ape

 

No I wasn't going Bananas or swinging around the house (I could easily break things around here) but last night after some time playing around with Animal Movements, whenever I got up to get something, I would instinctively start walking on my knuckles or if I wanted to stretch my hamstrings, I would straighten my legs as much as possible and start walking on my palms. Maybe I was just so in tuned with my animalistic side that it came natural to me.

This morning at 6:30, I woke up (it was already 70 degrees outside and my body was just ready) and went out into the Dungeon and started doing some Primate Training. Did several sets of hanging exercises, walked/jumped like a gorilla, walked like a monkey to stretch my hamstrings and just felt incredible. Is this the rediscovery of something? Am I naturally feeling like a primate of the Jungle? 

On a more serious note, training this way gets back to our roots of what strength and health is all about using our bodyweight. Just the hanging exercises alone are beneficial to stretching and strengthening the spine, core, arms and shoulders. The walking movements can be trickier but you'll be making your tendons stronger and building steel-like cords in your forearms. You do them long enough, you might have to be careful shaking someone's hand.

Being able to Monkey around (or more in this case, Ape around) regardless of your age makes you already stronger than the average person. Being able to climb, walk, hang or jump like a Primate takes on another level of fitness that is more keen to our natural instincts and abilities of our Jungle cousins. Now not all of a Primate's movements are meant for humans, we know for damn sure we can't exactly swing as powerfully like a Gibbon or have the crushing strength of an orangutan, but if we adapt to what our human structures can do and progress with our natural abilities, our strengths can increase and be less prone to injuries. 

It's not all about muscle, muscle, muscle. The idea of powering up our tendons and ligaments is something we don't always understand and how to train those areas. Most of the time, we go after the muscles because that's what we see on the outside. Some guy with large arms, barrel chest, a back that looks like North Dakota and legs like tree trunks is what many consider to be an ideal of strength; that's not always true. It's what holds things together and what makes our structure strong, muscles are just a piece of the puzzle. 

Train like a Primate using the Primate Power Super Strength System and have fun in your training. Progress naturally, don't rush it and get the basics down. Like for real, go Ape guys, it's awesome. 

Can Music Increase Testosterone?

 

When you workout, do you notice a difference in your energy when certain music plays or not? What about the level of energy when music doesn't play at all? Strangely enough, when certain music plays, there's an area of the brain that is triggered and it could supply an extra level of adrenalin or decrease a level of energy. Now I'm no scientist and I'm not sure how much study has been done on specifically music targeting levels of testosterone in men and increased or decreased levels of strength due to the type of music being played.

Most people who listen to music for workouts (from my observations and knowing people) tend to tune out anything else around them and just go through exercise after exercise. Others however, use music not just as a motivator but as a way to wake their ass up and have that burst of energy, keep it there for as long as the workout goes and go into this trance where it feels like you're invincible and every exercise you do becomes a cake walk or your strength is powered up and can lift or do bodyweight exercises with solid energy. 

For us guys, going to war is a human habit and fighting for what we want to achieve. That feeling of wanting to go into battle and feeling that adrenalin rush course through our veins. Where our awareness, focus and physical abilities jump up to 11 is the pinnacle of a strong workout. Music provides a key to unlocking our mental and physical abilities and aiding our strength in ways we can't always get on our merritt. Does it increase testosterone? Depends on the type of music you hear I guess. Now I don't consider Abba or Madonna to be very manly type of music if you're going into battle with a heavy deadlift or going after 500 Squats but some people have specific preferences of what drives them. 

Now I personally feel the best music for having that testosterone fueled feeling is various types of Metal, Hard Rock, Heavy Tribal Style, heavy riffs, certain classical music and just hard nosed balls to the wall Rap styles like DMX. Music can alter our brain chemistry and send us on a path that either channels our primal instincts or take us to a place we've never been before, the sound of a great tune could potentially give you a surge of power in your body and amplify your ability to withstand incredible amounts of strength, endurance and agility. 

Some feel it's best to not train with music playing because it's thought of to be a distraction from channeling your inner self. I use to think this way for a long time but nowadays, I sometimes workout with music on or off depending on what I'm feeling that day. It is kind of funny at times to do an exercise and a random song comes on that might throw you off like for example, I was doing Step-Ups one day doing my 1000 Rep workout with the cards and Blue Moon by the Marcels came on and just threw me for a loop for a second, luckily it's a favorite of mine but things happen. I don't consider Disney songs to be very powerful for fitness but if you're working out and having a good time, it isn't a bad thing in that area. 

Find the music that drives you and fuels that fire within that just makes you feel so damn powerful bullets can bounce off of you and you can tackle an exercise without fear or remorse. Strength should come from within, but music is like gasoline to a flame if you do it right. 

Here's a great song by The Hu that will make you feel you can ride into a battle and conquer your enemy with incredible strength and power surging through you. I've split wood with this song playing and felt like I had no fatigue and the splitting maul thrusted down faster and even more powerful. The amount of strength in my veins was out of this world, you may not understand the language of the song, but the sounds of the instruments just fires you up.  

Are Hundreds Or Even Thousands Of Repetitions Necessary?

 Herschel Walker, Bruce Lee, Gama, Dan Gable and Karl Gotch; what do they all have in common besides being some of the very best in their field of Sports or Art? They have literally done thousands upon thousands of repetitions of exercise over their lifetimes. They were also some of the fittest if not the fittest athletes in their time. The amount of push-ups, squats, sit-ups, sprinting, going over moves more times in a day than the average person would in a year. Were they necessary for their chosen endeavor?

These guys were at the top of the food chain in what they did. From Walker making records as a running back, Lee with his expertise in Martial Arts, Gama with his Undefeated Streak in Wrestling, Gable's unlimited endurance and Gotch's unbelievable Condition and Wrestling Knowledge. For them, being in top condition required countless reps to stay ahead in the game and outlast opponents with ease. Does the rep count in Calisthenics and Moving Weight really matter to become the very best? The truth is, in order to become the best in your chosen sport, you have to consistently do that sport to get better ad better. Very few ever reach the pinnacle of success. 

Although you can do 100's of reps per day with any given exercise, it's not going to make you a better athlete. It can have a heavy aid as a supplementation and laying down a foundation for what your goals are. Rickey Henderson was the greatest speedster and lead-off man in Major League history but after all that training and 25 years in Baseball, he was still 3 ticks shy of 300 career home runs. Karl Gotch has said Conditioning is your best hold yet some of the most conditioned fighters still lost or made mistakes. I do believe in being in great shape, but doing hundreds or even thousands of reps isn't always the key.

Nobody can outlast father time and eventually, we have to change how our bodies react and recover from certain aspects of training. If someone who's 20 years and in awesome shape can do 500 Push-ups a day, by the time he's 70, that number won't be that much of a priority. If you set goals and want to go after certain numbers either as a challenge or on a consistent basis, that's one thing but our bodies aren't always exceptional like world-class athletes, we can't train like them and anybody who says you can is a liar. Injuries can occur, reaching a level where boredom becomes frequent and recovery is as much a priority as the training itself. 

I have literally done thousands of push-ups, squats, step-ups, club swinging, hammer striking, nail bends and animal moves in over 15 years of everyday training in total, there comes a point in time where you need to reassess what you want to accomplish. Where does it end and what have you really done? People forget or haven't completely learned how to use their intuition or learned how to be aware of what their body can do and what it can't. A football player can't hold a candle to a Navy Seal and a Catch Wrestler won't always win a street fight, it's a different process of what the body can handle. Yes, it's incredible we can find ways to tap into our minds and get that second or third wind but you always seem to see that either in competition, survival modes and through a challenge, rarely ever on a whim. 

We don't need to do thousands of a ton of things to accomplish something, sometimes we only those few that will get the job done and get results that was meant for you to have. 1000 crunches won't get you six pack abs, 500 Push-ups a day isn't always going to help you in a fight and 2000 Squats a day won't always help you in an hour long wrestling match. Conditioning is a key but there's more than one way to skin a cat to get in incredible shape. High reps do crossover into other endeavors and have a helping hand but it isn't going to make you the healthiest person. 

Train with intention of what you need to accomplish and do it not for the sake of doing countless reps but to develop the quality of those reps and the quality of your body's level to be in energizer mode consistently regardless of age. The quality of life is more important than a number of reps in an exercise.

My Morning WOD

 It's one of those days where the energy levels are just right, the sun is shining beautifully and you're feeling pretty damn good. You may not get those days all the time but when the opportunity arises, take advantage of it and do what makes you happy. I got up and did a routine that I combined a few things together that opened up the body and stretched the living hell out of it without really straining and relaxed as much as possible. It was GLORIOUS!!!!

Started off with Matt Furey's 5x5 System using a few exercises from Combat Conditioning.

The Neck Chi Kung Routine were next and felt everything in my neck open up.

Joint Loosening Exercises were next and worked everything from head to toe, opening up the meridians and getting rid of unwanted tension.

Did 5 Minutes of the Farmer Burns Stomach Flattener which built up a pretty good sweat and strengthening the internal organs and deep breathing.

Finished off with 1 Minute of Shaking everything out and relaxing the entire body, opening up the lymphatic system and just feeling the great energy.

I have no idea how long this took but I'm guessing around 30 minutes or so but everything we by so quickly and with such flow and intuitive awareness. It's better to wake the body up with internal intention than just muscles, muscles, muscles. The practice of releasing energy that radiates and gives off powerful sensations of endorphins and relaxation. Power comes from within, not always how fast you move or how much you can lift, that's secondary. 

The Neck Chi Kung exercises alone can wake you up and help prevent headaches, migraines and groggyness, the rest is just icing on the cake. These are not your typical run of the mill type of routine, it is a great way to strengthen the neck without needing to bridge. It works all the muscles that keep your head in tack. 

The 5x5 System, stretches and strengthens the muscles, the tendons and ligaments that help build flexibility in the shoulders, spine, legs and hips. It shouldn't take more than 5 minutes.

The Farmer Burns Stomach Flattener is a no brainer but should be done on an empty stomach and start off with only a few reps until you can continue repeating the exercise for 5 minutes. It develops incredible breathing power, strengthen the internal organs and can burn belly fat within 5 sec per repetition. It can be done anywhere and anytime. 

Shaking the body out releases unwanted tension or any more tension that is left in the body. Breathe deeply and relax. It also releases toxins in the body at least that's what I've noticed and releases a great deal of endorphins and gets rid of that emotion of anger, anxiety and excess energy. 

This routine can supercharge the body within minutes and make you feel you can tackle your day with ease. If you also practice protecting yourself from Energy Vampires, having a bad day would be as rare as Al Pacino and Robert De Niro being in the same movie together. Get those juices flowing and feel amazingly awesome to get the day started.

It Is Fun To Do Something For Your Birthday

Turned 36 yesterday and quite frankly, I don't feel all that different. Still feel I'm in the best shape of my life, still look like i'm in my early-mid 20's and can still do awesome stuff. Sometimes when I reflect on some of the birthdays I've had, I do feel thankful I'm still here and get to share my experiences and my ups and downs either with my friends and family or with you guys. I've had some kick ass birthdays and some very really bad ones (including being laid up in a hospital bed or when I was 15 and face planted into a lake after jumping off a 10-15 ft railing and literally smeared my towel in blood). 

A few years ago when I turning 33, I was in this phase of doing up to 500 Hindu Squats a day for weeks seeing how fast I can do them and on my birthday, tried to see how many I can do in 33 minutes, ended up being 1000 doing 80 Squats and 20 Jumpers repeated 10 times. Being in my mid (almost late) 30's now, I do see things a little differently, my training is always changing and learning what I can do and what I haven't done before. On Sunday, I wanted to try something I never did before and that's how fast I can do 1000 Step Ups or get through a full deck of cards just doing step ups. I did 1000 in just around 52 minutes at a BW of 261.8. Figured a good feat before my birthday.

Birthday feats are fun to do, Jack Lalanne was famous for his feats of endurance pulling the boats or doing something crazy after he reached a certain age. Don't think I'm on that level yet but again, the man wasn't even human in his time. For turning 36, thought I would go for a hike with my wife out at a place a mile and a half down by our house. A good trail that was 3 1/4 miles long. The humidity wasn't fun but overall a beautiful hike, awesome scenery of the lake, didn't feel winded whatsoever and felt peaceful next to the most important person in my life. Got in another little workout later on in the day after getting lunch and making our way to an entertainment shop full of comics, funkos, movies, classic gaming consoles. Bought a couple books and given a unintentional birthday sale. Played around with a new Indian Club for my birthday (15 lber) and do 100+ Reps doing swings. 

Some people treat their birthday as if it was any other day, that's awesome and you get to choose what you want to do for it. For me, I choose to celebrate it the best way I can in my own way because I wouldn't have this many birthdays by now if I wasn't saved from the great people who treated my meningitis when I wasn't even 2 yet. I celebrate because life is too damn short and I don't want anyone to go through what I went through. On my 21st Birthday, I wasn't even really allowed a fucking beer because I was having surgery on my legs the following day. 15 years ago today was my 3rd and final surgery to be able to walk again after breaking both of them in a stupid jumping accident. I'am so thankful that my legs have kept me strong and continue to raise the bar on physical fitness.

No matter what your age, celebrate life and making it worth while for you. Share with the people you love and have fun, even if it's just another day, do something different and even find a challenge to do and see what you can accomplish. Set a new goal, do something spontaneous and set the bar for your continuation of life. Have a blast and have an amazingly awesome day.

Isometric Posture For Realignment And Recovery

Often times we push ourselves to the max and see how far our bodies can go. We take on different challenges, man up one another or proving to yourself what you're capable of. Training hard can be a good thing every now and then and some of us train as if our lives depended on it such as: Being ready to fight, have the stamina and strength to move somebody, have energy to play with the kids and saving a life.

Training smart is a whole other ball game. You're learning what works, what doesn't and how your body adapts to certain regimens and protocols. Training hard and smart is extremely rare as most do one or the other yet both can co-exist if you are wise enough to understand how both work. At the same time, it is important to train from an internal stand point, conditioning the mind and body in a different format by the use of recovery.

Recovering from hard workouts is crucial to how you will become stronger and healthier in the long run. When in your teens or 20's, recovery isn't as optimal because for the most part, you can bounce back quickly and move on. By the time you're 35 and beyond, recovery becomes a godsend  and you'll need it in order to move and be more efficient in your endeavors. I highly believe in recovery workouts, exercises you can do that don't require a ton of effort but aren't strenuous. You can a low level yoga workout, you can do deep breathing exercises, various postures or you can just literally stand.

Standing postures such as Wu Ji Posture, help realign the body and let's the nervous system repair itself. It's an incredible recovery tool and those who have practiced Tai Chi, Chi Kung or other internal arts have phenomenal abilities at a much older age. A standing posture can be assumed as an Isometric exercise or more accurately, an Aerobic Isometric because you're not exerting as much force and the idea is to relax more, not be loose but relaxed.

It's called a Wu Ji Posture in Chi Kung, the Sponge in Animal Kingdom Conditioning, Standing Meditation and other names of the same thing. Your feet are shoulder width apart, hands at your side, knees slightly bent pelvis slightly tucked and there you go. Relax as much as possible and breathe deeply and naturally. It sounds so easy to do yet most don't understand its true power to literally give your body a reboot or recharge. I would hold this posture for about 5-10 min at a time, every once in a blue moon I'll go for 20 minutes but 10 minutes is more than enough for me to feel recharged. I do it sometimes before a workout, after a workout, as a stand-alone (pun intended) or in-between exercises.

Just the idea of standing there, many will scoff at because it looks like you're not doing a damn thing and it makes you look lazy and resting or something. The truth is, our bodies may not recover as fast as others. Often times, recovery can take longer than you want it to and we push ourselves so hard, it overwhelms the Central Nervous System and our muscles will tear up, if you push too hard the tendons can break and you'll be in a cast for weeks or months. The standing posture strengthens the body on the inside and rebuilds flow to the muscles and the tendons/ligaments. It gives our brains a boost too because with practice, you can learn to quiet the mind and focus on your breathing or do visualization that innates powerful energy.

Start your power from within. Like Yoda says "Luminous beings we are, not this crude matter." Strength is more internal than what we ever do on the outside. Stand and rebuild, stand and harness your power, stand and use it to become superhuman. Socrates from the Peaceful Warrior says "There's never nothing going on", the Standing Posture is a testament to that statement, it seems nothing is happening but inside, everything is going on.

Become Tough As Nails Through Isometric Training

Isometrics can be tough as hell but that's what it was designed for. To toughen up the mind and body through sheer strength from the inside out. Most people don't think twice about isometric training and don't quite understand it's effectiveness to not only strengthen the body but to benefit from it's healing aspects as well.

I believe in the old school style of strength training because quite frankly with all the overwhelming info out there today, you don't know what to trust and understand the true nature of what works. Strongmen of the past and some today use Isometrics as part of their daily training so they can reach levels of strength and conditioning from just about any angle and become almost near Injury-proof.

I can't help but love isometrics and the countless exercises that can be done for just about any type of endeavor. At times I'll use the Isometric Power Belt or do them free handed, use a wall, a tree or using weights, there are so many variations you can do. Can it get boring at times, sure it can and that's why many trainers today think it's inferior when in reality, it can be a life saver.

It is well known that Isometrics are a forgotten style of strength training and although some things of it are still out there today, compared to yesteryear, we don't know the major impact it has.

The amount of time you spend on isometrics depends really on your goals and how much you want to put in for particular exercises. My approach is more on the 7-12 second contractions but from time to time like in these videos above, I'll go more than a minute to really target my body while focusing on certain groups of muscles. When I do Bridges, I'll do 3 min in the front and back each to strengthen my neck and my spine. It's not easy but it's a hell of a workout as it hits the whole body and the sensations of euphoria when you come out of them are incredible.

Although size isn't always the goal, being able to stay strong and conditioned in the long run is. Developing real strength is what will help you be useful for other endeavors. I love to chop wood when I have the chance or when we go camping like this past weekend, I love to help carry things when its needed and move things others can't or they're hurt. It puts a smile on my face that my strength and stamina can do things for others and not feel obligated. That's what really gives off when you put the effort into strength for others and yourself. 

Train with Isometrics and understand the value of its beneficial properties not just in health and physical fitness, but overall to have the strength to work, to help others and do things the average person wishes they can do. 

Morning Cardio

There's nothing wrong with getting the blood pumping or getting a little sweat going in the morning. Many people dread just getting up, showering, eat a little and run out the door to get to work. They may have an ok day and come home just ready to drop dead on the couch and watch a little something, eat with the kids/spouse/yourself and head off to bed to repeat it all over again.

Getting some exercise in before heading to work can change your mood drastically and give you a little endorphin high to feel awesome and ready to jumpstart the day. For me, it depends on the mood i'm in but if I get an urge, I might do some skipping, circuit training, step ups, hindu squats, animal movements or swinging the Indian Clubs. Often I'll do Isometrics but changing it up isn't a bad thing either.

Motivation can be a real bitch to get a hold of and the will to actually do something can be difficult for most people. You don't need to do an hour straight of exercise to make it count for something, just a few minutes can do the trick. Do some movements before getting out of bed, put on your favorite music to set the tone and do exercises that are on your level. You don't have to do a crazy crossfit workout or some infomercial program. Do a few push-ups, a stretching routine or some crawls for a minute to wake the body up. Just Bear Crawling for one minute in the morning will not only help you get fit but it'll jumpstart the brain and kick in your metabolism. 

This morning, I felt like doing Step Ups with a deck of cards and ended with 500 Reps. It felt amazing and the level of de-stressing was incredible. Great sweat running down, breathing and going at a solid clip and moving with very little to no rest. It felt therapeutic, it had been a while and didn't want to overdue it but hey it still woke my ass up. 

A deck of cards workout is a great way to wake the body up, develop some crazy cardiovascular conditioning and you don't have to do the whole deck if you haven't hit that level yet. Start out with a few cards and work up to a full deck. You can do Push-ups & Squats, one exercise, 3-4 exercises, work with kettlebells or whatever works for you. It doesn't take a ton of time and is a hell of a calorie burner and you may even keep burning calories some time after the workout. Be sure to drink water and get a little food in your system. A workout like that can build up a crazy appetite. 

One of my favorite Deck Workouts was what I call the Backlund Deck Of Madness in honor of the legendary pro wrestler Bob Backlund. It's two exercises of Step Ups & the Ab Wheel; you flip a card (red for the wheel, black for step ups) and you do the reps for that particular card. I would suggest you spend some time strengthening yourself on the wheel before doing this workout, it's intense, hard and brutal. This will test anyone in the realm of world class conditioning and physical fitness. I talked to Bob one time and told him about this workout, he thought it sounded pretty good. The fastest time I finished this workout was just under 45 minutes, if anyone can do it faster (with safe technique and pace), you've got some insane cardio bro. 

If you're not into doing intense exercise in the morning, do some qi gong or joint loosening exercises, this also wakes up the body and supercharges your organs. If you're someone who's had previous injuries or is unable to do much, do what you can. Life doesn't have to be so dreary and full of the same negative patterns, learn to change your mindset and use some positive energy. Do what is possible and do it on your level and progress. If you create a routine and stay consistent both mentally and physically, your life with have better quality. If you have kids, have them join you and train together as a family. Build bonds and push each other with great energy. 

Video Game Workouts

Being stuck in the house because of Quarantine can be a real pain in the ass for most people. For gamers, it doesn't matter if you're big on the PS4, XBOX, Wii or (if you're a classic gamer) a Sega/Nintendo, it can get boring after a while. I've always enjoyed video games ever since as a kid in the 90's playing Mario, Sonic, Streets Of Rage, Ninja Turtles, NBA Games, Star Wars you name it.

For you young kids out there, before there was VR, Dance Dance Revolution, Wii Fit and all that, the only way you even felt remotely getting a workout playing video games was the running pad you had to hook up if you had a game that was based on Track And Field. For some, when you had this, in order to move the players or in-game athletes, you had to run in place as if you were sprinting, even the most serious gamers today wouldn't last 5 minutes with this thing.

Along with today's technology, if you're into fitness, you can get hooked up to various games on certain platforms that have you doing exercises aerobically or just swinging your arms to get some blood pumping. Even though it's much easier today to get some form of exercise while playing video games, many people still aren't motivated or have any clue as to what you can do without realizing you don't need to hook up a damn thing.

One of the things that kept me in shape while I played video games, was to come up with a little game myself to do exercises based on the game's plot or in the case of a Sport's game, the wins/losses or getting scored on and having to do an exercise when you are getting beat a little. One of my favorite games growing up in my teen years was the MLB The Show series and always enjoyed playing the legends they had. Still going strong with that series at a point in my late 20's every once in a while I would play a game and if I got struck out, I'd had to do 10 push-ups, if I was pitching and the batter got a base hit I'd have to do 10 Hindu Squats. If a batter got an extra base hit such Double, Triple or a Homerun, I would do 20-30-40 Hindu Squats. Now picture having to do that for a full game. That be a hell of a workout.

You can do this with just about any game, all you need is a little imagination and create exercises for certain scenarios or scenes in games. If you're into War Games like Halo or Call Of Duty, you can do exercises for every time a member of your unit is killed or every time you lose a life. If you lose a life, you have to do 5-10 Push-ups, a member of your squad is killed, you do 10-20 Squats. You can make it even harder by doing Burpees or a harder variation of a basic exercise. If you're doing a two player game or 3-4 player game, you can do some trash talking and taking things to another level.

You don't have to do Push-ups and Squats, you can do Sit-ups, Burpees, Punches and Kicks (keep the distance to a safe area of the room where you won't hit anything), Leg Raises, Jumping Jacks or Lunges, whatever suits you. There's no reason you can't be fit while having fun playing video games. Video Games make us use our brains to figure out things to get certain points, to use hand/eye coordination to fight, dodge and block opponents and have quick reflexes because the higher a level you go up, the harder it is.

Make the use of your Gaming a way to help you stay fit at home. Hell it doesn't even have to be a video game, it can be a board game or a game you play on your phone, don't just sit around twiddling your thumbs, get in shape and never look at gaming the same way again.

If you're looking for Classic Video Games or updating your collection with Next Gen Games, check out my friend Cory Arrison's Retro Attack Ebay Store. If you're in the Santa Cruz area, come check out Retro Attack Official Store in the Capitola Mall along with my other friend George Tegenkamp's Hadbro Toys. Buy, Sell, Trade and Find vintage and classic toys and games that will have you getting that nostalgia feeling and collect some of the most rare items around. They're awesome guys and will hook you up.

What Isometric Routine Works Best For You?

For people who do practice Isometrics, at times it's not easy picking a routine or finding an interest in one particular area of Isometrics. Some use straps, others used the bullworker, some do Free-Handed, using the environment such as within the house or do full on Muscle Control. Courses such as 7 Seconds To A Perfect Body and Isometric Power Revolution (practically the same course just different authors) use the Free-Hand approach while one writes about fat loss and developing better musculature, another takes it on geared to purely physique type training or better to look at it from a old school Bodybuilding approach. Both do wonders.

There are people who practice a particular method of Isometrics and than after years of doing it, changes it up and acts like it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. How would you know what truly works? In my opinion; do different methods, practice styles of it in a combination. Although I prefer the straps using the Isometric Power Belt, I also practice Free-Handed, using things around the house, holding weight, posture type exercises and even animal based movements in an Isometric fashion. 

There are so many uses for Isometrics it's not even funny. You can do them for bodybuilding, rehab, increasing strength for weightlifting/olympic lifting, sports like MMA, Arm Wrestling, Baseball (segments of pitching and batting), Boxing for punching power and so much more. It is often overlooked because for one, they can be boring and two, it's harder work than many movement based methods. You can even use it to increase strength in your calisthenics for example; if you can do 100 straight push-ups do you think you can hold that same push-up for 2 minutes in the mid position? Many people can't. Doing a hold like that takes on a whole other sport of tackling not just the muscles but the tendons, ligaments and fascia. Try doing one push-up where you hold the top for one minute, mid for one minute and the lowest position for one minute and push back up. 

The best people that I have researched and known in this day and age that make Isometrics a cornerstone for incredible conditioning, physique building and superhuman like strength are guys like Bud Jeffries, Steve Justa, Steve Maxwell, Jarell Lindsey, Batman O'Brien, Matt Furey and a couple others. What they taught me about Isometrics through their writings, videos and even seeing one of them personally up close, it makes training all that much sweeter and much more leveled around doing things that help overcome plateaus and utilize cardio without moving. 

Don't always look to making a specific routine routine of Isometrics unless you have specific goals in mind, I encourage to use it as an add on to your regular training say either at the beginning, as a finisher or strengthen the weak points of your training. My use of Isometrics recently was to heal a minor injury to my left shoulder which was my fault since I used a method that had overusing the shoulder muscles for too many days in a row. Within a couple days, my shoulder was feeling great and no longer discomforting or even slightly painful, that was all thanks to Isometrics. 

Now if you want a specific routine that is exclusively Isometrics, here's an idea of what I do....

For most days if I focus on Isometrics, using the strap (or Power Belt), I would hit the biceps, shoulders, back and traps for those particular muscle groups (different exercises for different days). For the Chest, Abs and Legs, I stick to Freehand exercises such as a series of Chest Presses for the Chest, Side Bends plus Hollow & Arch Body Holds for the Core Muscles and Wall Sits mainly for the legs. My personal favorite Isometric is used in two different ways; Fist Over Fist (Which I learned from Furey) or Wrist Over Wrist (Which John Peterson calls the Milo, I call it the X-Factor cause it sounds cooler) and do this Free-Handed Exercise almost every time I do my Isometric Workout. It hits just about every muscle in the upper body and can be done anywhere at anytime. It's more of a Finisher Isometric than anything else but it's a favorite to get a pump going. 

God Dammit, silly me LOL, I forgot about the Freakin Neck (doing my best Kurt Angle impression). Neck Isometrics really are one of the most crucial aspects for any form of training especially those in combat sports. For me, It's Bridges and Self Resistance Isometrics that really work best. The only neck issues I've ever had was when I wasn't training my neck which isn't very often, I train my neck almost more than any other muscle group not only because I find it more important but it's a hell of a lot more fun. 

Add in some Isometrics into your training and see the skyrocket of strength you'll achieve from all sorts of angles. The late great Karl Gotch once said "Always work your muscles from every possible angle."