The Hammer Is Coming Back

It's been a while since I've slammed a hammer down on a tire and after some searching and playing around, I have an intention on getting back to hammer workouts once to twice a week (fingers crossed) to make things a little more practical or should I say TACTICAL!!!! One of my big workouts was doing really high reps with my Epic Sledgehammer (nicknamed Big Bertha) that weighs close to 60 pounds. It's a hell of a workout and it has helped in developing incredible strength but the speed and velocity is not meant for a hammer that big and I want to add that to my workouts.

The other day I took out my 10 lb hammer and hit the tire for 418 reps before I started noticing my left hand was getting a little scrapped. Why 418? I was using a deck of cards as my way of doing reps. I was going more for speed and thrust so I swung it pretty damn hard as fast as I could for each rep. This is why once or twice a week is good for workouts because mostly for recovery purposes but also if you haven't done it in a while, your hands might need some toughening up so you do what you can little by little.

I love hammer training and it has taken me some time to come back to it and doing things a little differently. I had previously trained to go as heavy as I could and do as many reps with a heavy hammer as possible. With Big Bertha, it was to increase weight every time I would beat the deck which at times took up to 3 workouts and I would add about 3-5 lbs or so at a time, started at 26 lbs. I can still do some damage with that heavy thing but not for 1000 or more reps anymore, maybe a few hundred and at that weight, it's more than enough. I decided this time, I wanted to focus more on how fast I can go with a certain weight and got a hammer from Stronger Grip that is lighter and only goes up to no more than 25-26 lbs. This is to take on more of a conditioning and speed style of hammer training. 

This particular hammer is something special though and I'm getting a very cool engraving on it that has a special meaning for me. Not only do I get to train with this thing but I get to have something custom done just for me which is why this company ran by Ryan Pitts is so awesome. The Tactical Sledgehammer is purely meant for conditioning and long term strength training and watch the videos of Ryan & his son Logan as they slam, swing, play and power up. The hammer starts empty at 13 lbs which is a great weight to use and goes up to 26 using shot lead which for conditioning purposes, you don't need to go higher than that. 

Hammer workouts are about as old school as you can get when it comes to training. Boxers, Wrestlers, Football Players, MMA Fighters, Laborers all had done some form of hammer work and had some incredible physiques and powerful upper body strength. When it comes to hammers, no one made it look more intimidating than the legendary strongman Slim The Hammerman who made his living with his hammer, he might as well been the white John Henry. So many exercises you can do with a hammer and you'll never get bored but the time and true swing and slam is a testament to a man's strength in the real world. 

One of the things I noticed about messing with hammers is that after a hard workout, it's not surprising that you would build up an incredible appetite. I can eat pretty good but after one of those high rep workouts, it just blew up and I was as you might say "Super Saiyan" hungry if you're a fan of the Dragon Ball Mythos. If you ever noticed how the Protagonist Goku eats, I wasn't too far off with the way I ate after a workout. Another great benefit is the amount of testosterone that is built up, this aids in muscle building and heightening up the metabolism. The more consistent, the more your body will change into a natural and powerful physique. When it comes to calorie burning, it ranks right up there.

Women can do really well using hammers too, it's impossible to build as much muscle as a man unless you take some form of TRT but with proper training, women can build incredible physiques that have very strong tendons, naturally muscular arms, shoulders, back and core. In my opinion, women have every right to be as strong as they need to whether physically, mentally, emotionally or whatever. 

Get your hands on a hammer and go to town. This is real functional strength and has more carryover to the real world than we are lead to believe. It's a working man's exercise but it also has benefits for both sexes or those who choose to be Non-Binary or whatever you choose to make of yourself, it benefits many and builds strength you can't get in the gym. Become strong and powerful no matter what. 

Pirates And The Animals

 Ahoy there mateys, it be a be a beautiful morning out on the Caribbean Sea as we sail to find the buried treasure of Cortez on The Black Pearl. Sorry, had a goofy moment channeling my inner Pirate. Who doesn't love a good Pirate movie? Now when it comes to talking about animals, how are they and pirates linked in this article? Well, if you ever read any of my workouts, sometimes I come up with weird stuff.

One of my favorite workouts is taking a deck of cards and doing reps of animal moves for a good conditioning program. Deck of cards workouts have been around for decades with multiple variations of exercises that even a legendary wrestler used to torture his students with. You can do all kinds of exercises but be prepared to get your ass kicked. It's fun, it's challenging and you never do the same workout twice. 

When I was in Oregon, me and the wife went to this seafood restaurant and I saw these decks of cards at the gift shop that I couldn't help but be in awe of and they were a deck of cards with pictures of Pirates. I snatched it up later in the trip and they are pretty cool. When we got home and settling back into our element, I wanted to do a workout with this deck and doing animal movements were my exercises of choice. My animal moves were the Bear, the Crab, the Chimp & the Duck. I made it through the entire deck pretty easily but still got a great sweat going and breathing heavily. After, I was thinking I had a great game for this.

To make an interesting scenario out of this, I came up with the idea based on Pirate Lore and some bad jokes where it didn't matter what exercises you did, you had to finish the entire deck or you walk the plank but instead of walking it, you are the plank. You hold a plank as you listen to A Pirate's Life For Me (which is less than 5 minutes long) and if you can't hold it, than you're lost in Davey Jones' Locker. Now that may be found annoying or really fun to do depending on your perspective but also if you finish the deck, you can reward yourself with either the end of the map that leads you to buried treasure or reward yourself with good food and drink or whatever. Another creative and imaginative way to reward yourself with finishing the deck would be that you passed the test to become Captain of your own ship and take control of the seas.

A workout never has to be boring and as long as you keep things simple and using your imagination, you can create just about any workout you want with the knowledge of exercises you possess. Workouts should be challenging but fun to do and to create an atmosphere that will have you coming back for more. Now you can do this "Pirate Workout Game" with any normal deck but if you have a Pirate Deck on hand, that just adds more to the fun. If you ever read or learned of any of the real life pirates back in the 18th century you know what they were really about and the horrors that went on but you can create your own pirate legend and make a game out of it. I wouldn't recommend this game be a drinking game that if you can't finish an exercise in the deck you had to take a shot of Rum. 

Have fun and remember to set the sails and head for that horizon because you never know what treasures you might find out there and what Islands you'll find on your journey. Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me. 

The Oregon Coast & My Birthday

 Been a tough year and throughout the ups and downs, me and the wife definitely needed some vacation time where it was just the two of us and getting away from things for a few days. We were supposed to head out to Lincoln City, OR on our Anniversary but that got botched because of that messed up accident we got into, so we made a new plan to head out there around my birthday. Safe to say, it worked out quite well.

We made it to the Oregon Coast the day before my birthday (July 27th) and although it was a long drive, we got to our hotel safe and got in some good ole beach fun. Our first full day was on my Birthday as I turned 37. Got in a great walk on the beach, ate at some cool restaurants and even got in a couple workouts that just felt right to do. My celebration workout was The Frank Gotch Squat Challenge which you can read about HERE.....I managed 10 Squats and than did 152 Hindu Squats in 5 minutes after my rest period from doing 30 second deep squat holds and adding 1 rep after each hold. I felt like my legs were on fire but it was a great workout. 

Continuing on throughout the birthday shenanigans, during a walk on the beach, I spotted a log that looked cool to pick up. I had no idea how much it really weighed but I'm guessing due to how solid it was and the ability to even get a grip on it, I'd say it was around 180-230 give or take and had my wife the photography goddess get a couple of shots of me holding it up. This was a beast for sure and only held it a few seconds which was the icing on the cake of just lifting the damn thing. Nature's weights baby LOL.

I had only been around the Oregon Coast maybe once or twice in my life before this trip and walking along the beaches was just so breathtaking and beautiful it made me miss the coastline in California. We walked on one beach called Siletz Bay that's literally next to the hotel we stayed at that had a beautiful dock and we got to see Seals swimming and resting across the way. The sunset was just awesome and it looked like a painting come to life. Here's a pic my girl took from our balcony.

Another beach we went to was called Road's End that had a long stretch of a beach with bunches of drift wood roaming around. It felt peaceful out there and having fun. A couple pics she took was a stretch of walkway and me just goofing around walking on the logs and balancing being a kid at heart. 

She was just having a blast taking pictures and practicing her Photography skills. She took some incredible pictures on this trip and I'm so proud of her at what she's becoming passionate about. This was definitely a trip to take advantage of for photo shooting.

Overall this trip was one of the best I've had in years and got to see some pretty cool stuff. Bought a couple decks of cards to add to my collection which were a deck of African Animals and Pirates. The little shops we went into were fun but can get Closter phobic because of hoe low the ceilings were and a bunch of people walking around a tiny store with very little room to move around. A couple places we went into was called The Chocolate Frog which had chocolates imported from various countries around the world and even found a chocolate frog from the Harry Potter films which is rare to find in most stores. The other was The Christmas Cottage and that was a bit much for me to be in because of how small it was to be around in. It was cute and had cool items but being in there longer than needed wouldn't want me to celebrate Xmas again.

I would say the most fun restaurant we went to was this Burger Joint called the Highway 101 where fresh made Burgers were cooked and had a great atmosphere of a total beach town style Burger place. Great people, awesome service and just fun to be in. It was the only food place we went to twice. The food overall at the places we ate at were pretty decent but a few were very forgettable. The second best would have to be Moe's on the bay, great seafood place and some of the best Halibut around. Growing up near beaches, I've been to a lot of seafood places and this was pretty damn good. 

There was never a dull moment on the trip and most of my training was just merely isometrics and deep breathing exercises, nothing huge or anything and it was one of those things where I can get in something quick in the hotel room and spend the rest of the time either sightseeing, going on the beach or watch the Olympics (Awesome swimming and gymnastics events). I would say on average when we walked on the beach, we walked a good mile and a half to two miles at a time and had a blast. She even carved out our initials in the sand having that moment of love and togetherness like Teenagers.

It was bitter sweet to leave the coast and for the most part we didn't want to leave. So much fun and just being together was so joyful and full of laughs, memories and finding ways to love one another more and more. Turning 37 was amazing and getting to spend it with this awesome woman was the best birthday present I can ask for.

Why I Prefer 6-12 Seconds Of Isometrics

 Learning certain aspects of training over time, you become accustomed to what works for you and what doesn't. You experiment and find out through trial and error what benefits you the most and how you develop yourself through mind and body. There are certain things many people preach in fitness I just can't stand and there are some that I take and mold it for myself that really hits the spot. The animal dice game is one of them, it helps me learn what to expect from the unexpected and keeps me on my toes. Isometrics however is a totally different ball game and a key form of my experimentation.

Isometrics have various ideas on what contributes to muscle building, strength training, the timing of certain holds and what benefits the idea of training anytime and anywhere. I'm just obsessed with the 6-12 second protocol of Isometrics because for one, I can exert as much force as possible and two, I can immediately change from one exercise to the next and keep my heart rate up. I love the cardio aspect of this and it's congruent with the awareness of my mind and body. With other protocols, it does become somewhat complicated for me to understand.

There are many aspects of Isometrics that do work such as holding a contraction at half the intensity for a longer period of time, the 30/30/30 format that is a core idea that Steve Maxwell & Drew Baye use and others but the way my brain is set up and where it goes can have frustrating directions. Unless I'm holding a wall sit or some kind of push-up or pull-up, longer holds effect my ADD and I at times will get bored after not even a minute, it just doesn't work for me a good portion of time, it has to be specific exercises that I understand and are enthusiastic about. 

The 30/30/30 protocol which effects the percentage each 30 second stage for 90 seconds throws me off and frustrates the hell out of me. First off, it's not as simple for me as does for others and when I'm supposed to exert the amount of force for each stage puts my mind in a whirlwind because as you exert force each stage, you're supposed to know if it's the actual percentage which IMO doesn't. The 50% the 1st 30, 70 in the second and 100 in the last makes no sense to me whatsoever. I just never figured out how that works and to be honest if you're trying to contract 100% at 30 seconds, that's practically and logically impossible, even sprinters can't go their maximum speed for 30 seconds, maximum force at best is right around 3-4 seconds if not only 2. The mechanics are not fluid with me on that. 

I look at longer holds as more of a meditative practice than a strength practice because if I only focus on the strength aspect, I immediately want to exert more because that's my thought process. Holding a handstand, a horse stance, warrior style poses, deep squat, wall sit and dead hang are all great for a meditative practice of isometrics. You don't have to exert as much force and yet it's still effective. If it's arm wrestling, deadlift, wall push, bow and arrow pulls, curls or mid fist plank, I exert as much force as possible for those 6-12 seconds because those to me are strength formats of Isometrics and I get far more out of that.

When it came to results and the way I can time a workout, shorter contractions with 70-80% of max strength is where I thrive at. It gives me a greater format of cardio as well. When I use my Isometric Power Belt or strap, I don't do the double loops very much because it's difficult for me to know if I'm exerting the same amount of force in both arms which in most cases I don't believe I do because my right arm isn't as strong as my left and focusing on both throws me off. Focusing on one arm at a time works much better for me and notice a significant strength increase with my right arm. Calisthenics wise, I don't do single limb training unless it's animal movements and when I do pull-ups my awareness in both arms is decent, it's hard to explain when it comes to certain exercises.

Do what works best for you, use your intuition and utilize the benefits. When things don't work very well but you keep forcing it or feel obligated, it's like mixing oil with water, many people don't thrive in what doesn't work. If doing the 90 second protocol of Isometrics works for you, continue doing it and be successful with it, if 6-12 works better that's awesome too. Don't settle for something that's a constant frustration and no matter how hard you try, you just won't get it and you won't be as successful. There's no one way to do something and sometimes it takes a while for someone to get use to it and become successful but for others, they get it right away or get it in a short amount of time and have a higher rate of success.

Keep at what you love, learn something new and experiment. The more you learn, the more you understand what comes out of it. 

Where Does It Lie When It Comes To Being An Expert?

 Across the internet spectrum when it comes to fitness courses and the foremost authority on training, where do you draw the line of finding someone with expertise in their field that is worth pursuing? Many claim to be an expert in this or that along with even going as far as calling themselves masters of the craft or even a level beyond mastery which in reality, an extreme few even hold up.

Speaking for myself, I can't call myself an expert or even remotely someone with authority when it comes to fitness; yes I have been around it off and for 25 years, more so in the 16 years where I've trained everyday trying all kinds of stuff under the sun. Do I know some things? Very much so. Do I have a good opinion on what works and what doesn't? Yeah sure but as an expert, get real. When it comes to "expertise" or having some kind of knowledge, how would it be defined? By the amount of years you've had within it? By how many certifications you have? By forming an opinion after decades of READING a book? Where do you draw the line of calling someone or yourself an expert?

Ego, willing to stomp on the competition or even going as far as humiliating someone in order to get by doesn't help in becoming an expert in something. Some people are very knowledgeable like Bud Jeffries, Steve Maxwell, Ed Cohen, Dan Gable and Ed "Strangler" Lewis all have/had strong and treasured knowledge in their respective fields and yes I would consider them experts. Their ability to learn from trial and error, failure and success and driven to be the very best, made many people under them very successful in what they were taught. By far, when it comes to wrestling, conditioning, progressive training, building mental toughness and which spots to work with for various individuals, these guys are the very best.

Certifications have their place which is true but real expertise comes into play on how you apply your knowledge with your sense of character and understanding of not just the field but to help give people opportunities to develop their own skills is the mark of an expert. Granted not many guys in their 20's and 30's (myself included) have a complete authentic level of expertise and from the level of that age range they do have a great skill set that they can get by on. This isn't a knock or an insult to anyone, I firmly believe that when someone who has a great sense of knowledge and skills in their field can help me whether it's 20 years or 100 years of experience and I want to learn, I give them a chance and see what comes of it.

I can give an opinion and share my experiences since I've been around this since I was a teenager but not at the level of high end expert. I never claimed to be one and I don't believe in having authority over others who have way better experience and knowledge than I do. I want to help as many as I can who ask for it and sometimes I can't answer or give someone something to learn because my knowledge does only go so far and direct them to someone way more qualified than me. Sometimes my answers for people can be heard as crude, maybe too basic and downright weird but I do what I can. 

Some claimed experts are complete assholes and like to use this narcissistic mindset that because they're an expert should be treated like a god and whoever doesn't agree with them is scum. Very few experts in the world have a great sense of morality but are firm in their beliefs due to their experiences and who to work with. 

Being trained under someone like Bud Jeffries up close, he makes you feel like you can understand what he teaches and makes it relatable so you can learn and succeed in your own line of training; that to me is an expert I want to continue with. My session with Garin Bader back in 2010 still gets me to this day in a good way because as odd as he was, it made me feel like he could be one of the guys and show you stuff that is exciting and enthusiastic. Garin is a very unique person, like Bud, he puts a stamp on training that is often times off the wall but makes it fun and enjoyable while learning how to value the true aspects of creating something not just physical but emotional, mental, spiritual at times and you can't help but smile about it. 

So one last time, where does it lie when it comes to being an expert? For me it boils down to great knowledge, the ability to understand people, have extensive wisdom from experience and proving that success is real with proper applications of the field you're in. Some people can get away with it by just on certifications alone and the ability to manipulate by showing credentials that in reality are sketchy but go over someone's head. Credentials can only get you so far, the proof and the authenticity of that proof tends to show the true nature of an expert. 

Does It Really Matter How Long Or Short A Workout Is?

 We go against the clock a lot in many fitness oriented systems and quite frankly, a lot of the time it's pure crap. When you're against the clock, it puts more pressure on what needs to be done as opposed to what can be done with realistic results. There's a difference however with going against the clock and having the clock work for you. When you create a window of opportunity in a timed fashion, there's a bigger outlook on how you perform in my opinion. It works for some and others, not so much.

With creating a window to workout and time it enough to put the work in, you're establishing a different atmosphere to build and hit a workout hard for what it's worth to do. Some people have more time on their hands and others have only a small amount of time to do something that makes training worthwhile. Short workouts work great for people strapped for time but they don't always understand how much they could really get done in such a short period. For long workouts, I think it depends on what you're shooting for and finding ways to train for an extended period of time. Some do longer workouts because that's what they're told to do to get results but the truth is, it has to be done with a realistic point of view and what the body is able to handle with the extent of that form of training.

Short and intense workouts throughout the day or a couple times during the day has worked and gotten greater results than those who do one long workout where the intensity is less so and has an easier pace. I see it as, if you enjoy either one and you get results, why does it matter and who gives a shit which one is better than the other. Some workouts for me last somewhere between 30 min to an hour and that's all I need but other times, shorter (less than 10 minutes) sessions have a profound effect in how I do other things the rest of the time. Once you understand how short and long workouts are effective for your needs, you can create any workout you want. 

This morning I went for a walk around the neighborhood with a 40 lb weight vest on and that took roughly about 30-35 min and felt great. For most, that could be their entire workout for the day and would be satisfied. Yesterday I chose to do 30+ minutes nonstop of step ups because I felt like it, it's something I enjoy and I get something awesome out of it. Some workouts are 10 minutes of a superset and that's all I'll do for the day because I got other stuff going on, hell even on my wedding day I got a workout in before heading out to the venue because it's what I felt I needed to do and wasn't very long at all. When you open up yourself to create a window regardless of time, you establish a form of discipline that also comes with the joy of training.

What matters to you whether your workouts are short or not? What do YOU get out of it and is it worth the effort? Be open to creating opportunities to train no matter what because if you want to be in great shape and get results, you need to put the work in and sometimes that means creating a timeline when things in life get in the way. You're not always going to get in an hour plus long workout but that doesn't mean you should sacrifice your training, find the time to do something, it's better than not doing anything at all. 

Be instinctive, create opportunities and develop a discipline while getting the most out of what you do and make it interesting and a joy for you and nobody else. Train with a vengeance but also train with intelligence too.  

Goal Setting Vs Intention

Goals were never my strong suit and for good reason, whenever I talked about them, I always put more pressure on myself than what was originally intended. I have failed more times than I can count but I've also been successful in what I wanted to achieve. My intentions were always to be fit and be able to do things with ease. My training changes constantly and the idea of sticking with one thing because of what a goal was just never made it through, at least not to its fullest extent.

When I set my mind on something, I intend to do it with the best of my abilities but when it came to a goal, my intentions were in the right place but always felt like I was setting myself up for failure and I have myself to blame for that. When I was weight training, I never really knew what the hell I was doing and couldn't think of a goal to go after because all I really cared about at the time was just being strong but never set a specific amount of weight to go after, I just did it and suffered in the process. After my accident, I did have a goal to get stronger again but it became something more and it became an obsession once I stopped looking at it as a goal, I was just determined as hell to find out what I can do.

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with setting a goal and you want to accomplish something, I never want to take that away from anyone. You set your mind to something and you go after it but also be prepared if things don't go your way. Sometimes when we set goals, they become such a part of our psyche that it puts everything else that could be great aside and set the tone for losing more than gaining. Michael Jordan had incredible goals to achieve and put so much on himself that eventually that fire burnt him out and when he retired for the first time, he needed to go in a new direction.

Walt Disney was an awesome visionary and set goals to create one of the most powerful empires in entertainment history. He took every bit of his vision and spirit and laid it out to build something nobody thought he could achieve and made a mark on the world that will live on forever whether it's good, bad or downright ugly but he did it. He set goals and achieved them but also failed. Setting a goal can't just be on just taking a risk and expect something to happen, you have to be prepared for the unexpected and understand that a goal could potentially point you in another direction that you didn't intend to be in or go forward with. The idea of intentionally going after something but understanding the risks involved whether you fail or succeed brings in the foundation of really making something happen.

With intent, you put forth in the direction you want to go and learn the risks you're willing to take and have the courage to fail. It's not about failing intentionally, it's about understanding the direction you intend to go and that the potential to fail is there. Success can be a powerful thing and you intend to become successful with where you want to go. Now there are things that we need to be successful in in order to stay alive, that's something very different but if you have a route and you want to be successful towards that road to your destination; what are you willing to do in order to get there? Will you have the mindset to take failure as it is? Are you willing to take a shortcut in order to get there faster? What about changing routes that may seem harder or smoother? What are your true intentions?

What are my intentions with what I do? I intend to do what is possible to make myself the fittest I can with little to no injuries along the way. I intend to be better at writing little by little and I will make mistakes in that area of the journey but they're also lessons I can continue to learn from. I intend to use what I have to keep myself in solid condition for as long as I live and not rely on the gym. My biggest intentions is to have fun with what I do while at the same time learn when it's time to be useful when I'm needed. 

Silly Rabbit Trix Are For Kids

 It is true, certain things are geared towards children and raise their levels of imagination and seeing some cool things. Until you grew up and still watch yet collect something like My Little Pony and you're a 50 year old man who hasn't seen the sun in 20 years. Having eaten Trix only a handful of times in my lifetime, it's safe to say I could go the rest of my days without eating it. We as a society develop certain aspects of entertainment and food towards a demographic that gets people excited or something to grab, the odd thing is, kids get toys and cool looking cereal boxes while adults get medication for every possible thing under the sun and whatever is wrong with them, they take something for it.

There's got to be something that's geared for everybody or at least a good amount of people that has spanned generations? Movement is something that's geared for everybody isn't it? I mean as a kid (at least a generation or two ago), we ran, went swimming, played out our favorite animals and didn't have a care in the world if we slipped off the slides, monkey bars or swings. What the hell happened? Being careful has become a little over the top and although I believe in being safe, I also believe in being able to explore and learn what your creativity is and seeing what it feels like to have an imagination and be able to move without being so damn analytical about everything.

When it comes to movement, the basics should be taught and build a foundation but after that, how you pursue it is up to you, find your way to master them to become better and getting creative with your skill set from those basics and progress through your own admission. We all progress differently and some are slower than others and some are faster and learn quicker but the principles are still there. What we haven't learned at least in today's world from a fitness standpoint is catering to an individual's abilities whether they're a beginner or advanced and what we are taught is the same curriculum and expected to progress the same way and follow along as if we know what the hell we're doing. 

We don't absorb as much as we did as a kid and wanting to explore new things in order to get better at the things we do in life. As we get older, we lose sight of what it's like to have an imagination and think creatively and cater to what we are told what works and what doesn't, become analytical and overthink with caution. You don't need to take extreme risks or measures to do cool shit but just a hint of courage and a bit of a backbone to take a chance on something that can develop skills and strength to move forward with life's obstacles. 

  It's one of the reasons why I love playing my animal dice game, it creates something for both worlds where I get to feel like a kid while at the same time strengthen my body and enjoy the feeling of crawling, jumping, balancing and more the way we were meant to do as human beings. I get to be all sorts of animals and play out cool scenarios in my head as I move. Other aspects of movement such as MovNat, Animal Flow, Ginastica Natural and even Yoga bring out the joys of being human and working towards building something greater than before. To be in condition for the long haul, strong when needed and agile like a kid. It's the enjoyment and exploration of the human spirit. We need to have that in our lives. A demographic is a specific group of people that is catered to, why not strive to have something catered to as many people as possible regardless of age, sex, creed or whatever?

Verne Gagne & Isometrics

 Athletes promote themselves in various ways; Michael Jordan had his shoes, Bo Jackson had his "Bo Can Do Anything" campaign and Hulk Hogan had his weight set (advertised by the late Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff) but oddly enough, there was a time when the legendary wrestler/promoter of the AWA Verne Gagne was showing Isometrics calling it Gagne-Metrics. 

There were a lot of stories surrounding Gagne for decades especially as a promoter and the what wrestlers he wanted along with how he treated people. When I met Greg Valentine at a comic con here in Idaho, he told me that Verne was quite an asshole. There's no denying that Verne was a great athlete in his day; Alternate for the '48 Olympics, exceptional college wrestler, was considered for the Green Bay Packers and was one of the best pro wrestlers of his time. 

If you're a student of pro wrestling, you've definitely heard the tales of how he trained wrestlers in his barn and at his office building in Minneapolis. Legends like Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat, The Iron Sheik, Jumping Jim Brunzell & Gagne's son Greg were all tortured and ran through the rigorous training Verne laid out. Now whether Verne had them do Isometrics at that time in the 70's is hard to say but he did do them or at least showed to a regional audience back in the mid 60's. This was also a time where Jack Lalanne was still going strong with his workout show and I think Verne wanted to cash in on something of that sorts.

For the most part, the workout Verne displays is about as basic and stupid easy as you can get and for the record, he has little enthusiasm and isn't very upbeat and charismatic as Lalanne would be. He shows three exercises which you can see in the video below. Don't get me wrong, they're great exercises especially for beginners or those who want to something that's quick. This was also the era where Isometrics were at their peak with the Hoffman courses, Olympic wrestler Henry Wittenberg's course and others. 

Safe to say Verne's Isometric Training never really went anywhere and it's not at all surprising. It just didn't have anything at the time that really got people interested and if anything, it was just another small promotion to advertise for his company and to get people involved somehow with the AWA. Today it is a gem to find and if you got your hands on a book he had at the time, that's a rare thing to have. In the fitness world, he isn't too well known but if you love pro wrestling, he had one of the greatest promotions in the history of the business and just about anyone and everyone who went to the AWA were either stars in the promotion or went on to become bigger legends in other territories eventually in the WWE. Had great matches with the likes of Lou Thesz, Billy Robinson, Nick Bockwinkle and others. Whether you loved him, hated him or just love wrestling, Verne was a legend of his time.

One of Verne's Classic Encounters with Lou Thesz....

   

The Final Nail In The Coffin After 15 Years

A while back in October, I did an exercise that I demonstrated on Social Media called the Hindu Burpee; combining the Hindu Push-up & Hindu Squat. I've written a couple articles on it which you can find somewhere on this blog. It was a great exercise and I learned that particular variation from Matt Furey on his Membership Site. This exercise did have a negative effect or a positive one depending on the circumstance surrounding it that ended 15 years of my association with him.

The way it ended was I showed my demonstration on his Private Group on Facebook and wanted to give people an idea of what it meant for me. I never intended to steal it or make a big deal out of it, just showing an exercise all the while crediting Matt and what the exercise is about; it backfired and I not only was removed from the group, he unfriended me and terminated my status as a member to his Inner Circle site. I made the effort to reach out to him and to ask why and if he had such a problem with it, why didn't he ask me to just remove it which I gladly would've done if he directly told me to. All he said was (paraphrasing) "Let me think on it" and nothing else after that.

It devastated me because for over a decade and a half, I bought course after course, sunk energy into learning from him and hell even had a one time interview (which to this day I still think was horrible on my end). It hit me hard because his book Combat Conditioning literally got me on my feet again and changed everything for me when it came to training. Around my second to third Surgery, I got the book and started reading through it, the moment I was able to walk again I focused that first month to nothing but the Royal Court and put everything I had into self-rehabbing and getting in shape. Within less than a few months, I had strength and conditioning I never experienced before and it put me on the path to Physical Culture.

Throughout the years, I made those exercises and other things he put out a priority and made 90+% of my training to bodyweight exercises. He got me into the cables, the qi gong stuff, the pathway to the old time strongmen, him and a couple friends led me to Bud Jeffries, the same man who became one of my dearest friends and officiated my wedding. Furey made that explosion for me to carve out my passion for fitness. I was literally loyal to the cause he created. 

For it to end the way it did without any explanation, no response back at me and just making me feel like I was kicked to the curb, for what? Did he think I was trying to steal his thunder, make a ton of money off of him, upstage him? I couldn't do any of those things if I tried and never spoke to me again and treated it like I meant nothing to him but a follower who was a student to his method. It pissed me off for quite some time, I only told a few people what happened including Bud. I got a reality check about Furey that I won't go into and as I started to understand it better, it made sense on why he did what he did. 

Whenever I try to do Combat Conditioning or some other training methods I learned from him, I couldn't bring myself to really finish anything because it just puts a dark cloud over me and I would at times get angry or don't have the will or desire to get a workout done. I'm not saying his stuff doesn't work, they do and one of many people in the world that is living proof of what they can do. He has done a lot to bring Bodyweight Exercises to the general public but let's face it, his methods for all intents and purposes are refurbished exercises that were taught by Karl Gotch and others throughout centuries of training incredible athletes. Most would say they're knock offs or rip offs of other people's methods but I think the word Refurbished is more appropriate.

I never wanted to be an enemy and it was never an intention to make exercises he put out a thing where I called them my own, things happen for a reason and although it put a hole on 15 years of dedication, like a rock being thrown into a lake, the ripples are there and go away but the lake is forever changed. I was reluctant to write this because I don't know what effect it'll have and I wish things went differently but life goes on and Combat Conditioning served its purpose for me. 

Matt, for what it's worth, I hope you continue to live the life you made for yourself and continue coming up with training ideas that will give people results. You started my path and because of you, I will continue to learn from others and make the most of it.  

Building Great Grip Strength

 

Our hands can be either deadly weapons, smooth & peaceful or they can be used to build & destroy. Training the hands creates powerful entities that can determine where our strengths and weaknesses lie. The building blocks of developing a powerful grip showcase what we are capable of in certain aspects of life whether it be sports, law enforcement, carpentry or blacksmithing. 

My aspirations for developing grip strength was what I struggled for years developing the nerves in my right hand from the meningitis. After learning a few things from the old-time strongmen later on in my life in my 20's, it was apparent that I keep up the various methods of these men of strength. For years I did various feats from bending steel to ripping phonebooks to levering hammers and other cool stuff and I'm proud that I was able to do those things; now in my 30's, some things changed, I can still do some feats but my attention is more on keeping my hands healthy and strong for the long haul. 

Keeping the hands supple and flexible is a must as we age because as we get older, we run a higher risk of developing arthritis and bone spurs in the fingers and wrists. We may not need an extreme amount of strength as we age but have enough to still do things without pain and nerve damage. Finger Gymnastics is one of the very best courses that helps you prevent problems in the hands such as Carpal Tunnel and the other two points I made here, simple exercises that are very effective in developing the strength, agility and suppleness not just in the muscles or nerves but also the tendons and ligaments. Weak tendons and ligaments won't get you very far.

To really understand certain aspects of strength, training with a thick bar can show you some realities of how strong your grip is. You won't be able to lift as much weight as you normally would with a regular bar but that doesn't mean you can't get strong in that area. One of my favorite things to do in my training is taking the Fat Gripz and attaching them to the handles of the TNT Cable System and really tackle exercises that not only hit the muscles I'm working but also challenge my grip in the process. It's tough work and you don't need to do much to feel it. Just attach them to a pullup bar or a kettlebell and notice a huge difference in your strength, balance and the need to squeeze hard with a vengeance just to work an exercise. 

When it comes to weights per se, I like to really test my grip with heavy hammers such as my Epic Sledgehammer or Thor Hammers. These bad boys will make you humble as hell when it comes to grip strength. The handle on the Thor Hammers are thick enough to where even exercising them like clubs takes a good amount of balance and your hands will be tested. In the video above, I demonstrate doing the bottoms up press with the 30 lb Thor Hammer. You've heard of the Bottoms Up Press with a kettlebell, that's quite a movement or hold as it is but this is a different style of gripping and balancing, you have to almost pinch the ball at the bottom of the handle and shift your body differently than usual. It can be dangerous and is a unique skill to do. 

There are a great many ways to train the hands but the reality is, if you don't train them properly or take good care of them, they can lead to problems in your future and if you're in a job where you're required to use the hands for specific tasks, you don't want to be useless. It's also one thing to get them calloused and toughening them up, many laborers, farmers and those who work in manual labor have some tough hands but very few know how to also take care of them and many have huge problems later in life just picking up a pencil or a mug. 

Condition the hands to develop strength that lasts and creating awesome suppleness and flexible in the fingers and wrists where they can be nearly injury proof. The Indestructible Body is another great course that teaches this. Be safe, get strong and kick ass. 

Are Aesthetics Really That Important?

 Having a beautifully pleasing physique can do a lot for you and it shows the work you have put into the training you do; but does it have any real significant importance? Don't get me wrong some of the best athletes in the world have incredible bodies but how long does that physique even last, a few years, a decade or maybe even a month who knows. Hard work does pay off but even the most pleasing physique can have damaging effects especially if you use performance enhancers or just heavy doses of steroids. 

Just because you have a great body, doesn't always mean you have other attributes to back it up. Here's an example, Alexander Karelin was arguably the greatest Greco-Roman Wrestler of his time maybe even ever and had one of the most powerful physiques that would make the Old Timers' jaw drop and has accolade after accolade of accomplishments but yet in his very last Olympic Match, he got beat by a farm boy who didn't look like he can make it a mile without dying and practically came out of nowhere. Rulon Gardner was so conditioned that despite his looks, wore down the Russian beast and won a gold medal for the good ole USA.

You don't have to look like a classic bodybuilder in order to be a badass. George Forman, Ed Strangler Lewis, Butterbean, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Paul Anderson and others never really had good looking muscles or had abilities other athletes had but they were practically superhuman in their field and made an impact that leaves them in the legendary status to this day. Aesthetics have their place in certain areas but rarely today you have guys with awesome bodies that have the strength, agility and endurance to back it up. 

My physique changes from time to time as you have seen with results from doing Hill Sprints, Isometrics and other things but I know realistically I don't have the desire or the will  to develop a pleasing body, I just want to be healthy and conditioned that even in my later years I can still go and be able to do things. A physique isn't going to save your ass in the long run but conditioning will. This doesn't mean you eat everything under the sun and expect to be in awesome, it does take eating good food to get the most of your training as well but stop trying so hard to be the next Arnold Schwarzenegger or think that just because you look like a million bucks you think you can outwrestle someone or hit a homerun 500 ft or even run the 100 yard dash in under 9 seconds, be realistic but also strive to be the best version of yourself because remember, there's only one YOU!!!

When The Animals Call

 Our energy levels vary from day to day and we don't always know when those will dip or just have a moment of pure adrenaline. Some days we'll feel like crap and have various mood swings where we can feel happy one moment and all of a sudden do a 180 and be an ass. We're human, it happens and it's part of our nature. Some days are better than others and we just have that bundle of energy. Having that kind of energy shouldn't go to waste but neither should be at an excess.

Exercising is without question incredible for productively getting that energy out. Even if you're in a bad mood and just need to find a way to get rid of it, training can definitely help beyond just getting physical, it could also relieve stress from an emotional and mental stand point as well.

Whenever I need a pick-me-up or have that excess energy or just find a way to chill out, I turn to the animals and just play my animal dice game. It changes my state of mind completely and puts me in a better place to think clearer and feel better all around. Life is hard at times and its important to find the good and positive things that make life interesting. Moving around like an animal has this power to channel stress in ways certain methods can't match, that doesn't mean other methods are crap and what you do makes you feel better and changes your mood should be in your arsenal. 

When the animals call, I go until it's time for me to stop. At times it's only a few minutes but those few minutes can change an entire day. The crawling, the jumping, the walking and the balancing all put things into perspective and harness a strength to be better, to prevent negative things from entering your mind and release endorphins that make the world feel easy to be in. 

Get the most out of the stress you want to get rid of or use what's possible to get that excess energy out so you'll feel more clear headed, be able to sleep better, better control of your breathing and letting things flow. When the animals call, try answering every now and then, you'll be surprised what you'll find out.  

End Of The Road On Hill Sprint Training For Now

 Since May 17th, I wanted to see what I can do doing Hill Sprints and it was a joy to do and I loved it but I don't have the drive to do them for a while. The reality is, it's a 15-20 minute walk to the Hills I was running on and getting there, doing some kind of warm up, sprint and than walk back was putting some stress on my shin and ankles and needed to stop. 

Sometimes you need to change things up to avoid injuries and when you get burned out or have had enough, it's important to not force yourself into something you don't put your heart into. Now if I was less than 10 minutes away walking there, it be no problem but since day 1 of walking again back in '05, it can be difficult for me to walk for an extended period of time without feeling some kind of discomfort which has led to pain at times. 

My results from training on the Hills are pretty good and after about close to 2 months, I've put on some muscle and although I weigh practically the same, my shape is different and lost some fat. It has given me some fresh perspective on what it takes to train with intensity and fortitude to push myself to a different level. Although the runs were short, each sprint taught me how to handle my footing, determine speed and explosiveness during the duration and practice solid rest time for optimal performance. 

On Friday, I was doing 20 second sprints and the distance was roughly the same but the very last one, for some reason the distance was further than all the others and I was pushing hard on the others. When you're determined to find out what you're capable of, you can do things you didn't expect to do. These last results are from June 14th and yesterday. 

When I was sprinting, I would think of myself as the Flash or the legendary Walter Payton, just exploding upward and giving everything I had. That's one of the true aspects of this kind of training, there's more to it than just shooting up a hill. I don't know what I'm going to do next but for the next phase of training, it can lead to anywhere from Hindu Burpees to another chapter of carrying, step ups, animal workouts or whatever comes to mind. It's just a matter of what I make of it to get the most out of. 

Wrestling In Mongolia

Throughout mankind there have been many different styles of wrestling or grappling. In certain regions of the same country, you can find various styles of wrestling and what it pertains to the culture of that region. In today's age we understand the concepts of Freestyle & Greco-Roman Amateur Wrestling, Catch As Catch Can, Folkstyle, some understanding of Kushti or Indian Wrestling and others but how often have you read about a style that is centuries old but rarely talked about such as Mongolian Wrestling?

From our history books, the most famous thing about Mongolia was the rise and fall of Genghis Kahn, the legendary warrior and general of quite arguably the greatest army that conquered nearly the entire world. Did you know that many of his soldiers were incredible wrestlers and highly skilled archers? The reason he chose many wrestlers because they were the embodiment of strength, skill and durability. Archery as you may have guessed was one of the greatest form of weaponry that dates back thousands of years used in War & Hunting. 

Mongolian Wrestling or Bokh (meaning Durability) is a folk style of grappling where in order to win, your opponent's body other than his foot must touch the ground. The match has some Judo & Greco-Roman elements to it but there's no pins or submissions and it's mainly open weight classes and no time limit. In Mongolian Culture, Wrestling is king. It's one of the "Manly Skills" that includes Archery & Horsemanship (In other words the Trinity of the seemingly unstoppable Kahn Army).  Wrestling events were common during the Qing Dynasty that was from 1646-1911 I believe.

Cave Paintings that date back around 9000 Years (7000 BC) in a Mongolian Province show a match that was surrounded by crowds. Bokh has appeared on Bronze Plates as well within the ruins of the Xiognu Empire. Originally a Military Sport, it was intended to showcase the Strength, Stamina & Skills of recruited Troops. Kahn & other Emperors supported the sport to the degree that today, a Festival called Naadam is the continuing tradition of the art of Bokh.

The competitions are tournament style and has a long list of competitors that one tournament can last about a couple days. The top ranked wrestlers are given titles from their places in the tournament which are.....

Sum Falcon

Sum Elephant

Aimag Falcon

Aimag Elephant

Aimag Lion

National Falcon

National Hawk

National Elephant

National Garuda

National Lion

National Champion

National Surge Champion

National Wide Champion

National Grand Champion

These are the titles out of at times 1000 Wrestlers (But mainly over 500). The Naadam takes place in July every year, the largest competition is the National Naadam in Ulaannaatar which houses the largest number of wrestlers. Two other Classes of the Naadam (Aimag & Sum) are on the bases of Mongolian Administrative Divisions. 

It is quite a site to how important this festival is to many guys who compete. The training these guys go through is pretty insane (what wrestling training isn't insane) and their diet is mainly of meats. A lot of competitors have powerful legs and although they don't have muscles that stand out like a bodybuilder or athlete we're use to seeing, they still have some serious strength and endurance. Some matches only last a few seconds but others can go quite a while but in the end, the moment you fall to the ground it is over. 

To get a glimpse or the idea of how these wrestlers train, compete and utilize the philosophy and culture, here are a few videos to check out. One of the videos is a music video by The Hu that opens a Naadam Festival.

 

The After Effects Of Hill Sprinting

Can we just have a decent amount of weather FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!!!!! Sorry, had to channel my inner Chris Farley for a moment. Training in this heat can be a real bitch and if you have a routine going and it's outside, be careful out there. It was already in the 90's by the time I did my Hill Sprints today. Couldn't do my normal speed but managed to kick my ass. 

All in all, Hill Sprints are still one of the best methods for burning fat and increasing your metabolism while putting on muscle at the same time. When you're resting the majority of the time, that's just one of the perks but also the work itself is so damn short it's ridiculous. Today I did a total of 100 seconds of work on the Hill and especially in this sun, that was more than enough.

One of the best after effects from Hill Sprinting is the endorphin high where negative stress just gets kicked to the curb and you just feel happy and feeling like a million bucks. It feels peaceful and the relaxation feels like you never want it to go away. Those moments where the world is just right and life is at its finest. 

When I finish a session and walking back home, it seems like I'm walking faster going back than I was getting there. Maybe that's the endorphin high kicking in or my body just naturally has that extra pep in my step. Sweat is pouring and I can't help but smile and have that emotional and mental clarity. My stride is perfect and naturally breathing deeply as possible is just awesome.

The calorie burn is another perk I would think many would love and the continuation throughout the day is the cherry on top of a killer ice cream sundae. Food tastes better and at times it'll feel like you can eat a wild elephant, Hill Sprints is for sure the GOAT when it comes to body composition and the transition rom shedding unwanted fat and developing natural muscle.

All this gets the job done no more than 3x a week and never needing more than a 30 second burst. People tend to find that some sprints should be up to 45-60 seconds which in my eyes is pretty unrealistic because for one, you're not even going as fast as you would on flat ground and two, your level of speed can only sustain for so long before you feel like you end up jogging instead of sprinting. 

The last big perk, the cold shower you feel after coming back from a workout feels like you can take on the world and having that feeling of thinking you're having the best shower of your life. Cold showers help burn even calories and increasing brown fat while decreasing white fat (look up the difference and you'll know what I mean. 

For more after effects, research on Hill Sprint Benefits and see for yourself why this method is incredible for a lot of things. Be safe, drink plenty of water and keep having an amazingly awesome summer. 

Cold Showers Can Be Your Best Friend

 

Still hearing that song from Beverly Hills Cop 2 "The Heat Is On" in my head as this heatwave continues throughout the Pacific Northwest. This particular heat is meant for people who live in freaking Arizona, not those who're near the ocean or live near mountains in these specific areas. Hell I don't know how people survived the Ironman that went on here this weekend. 

When it's this hot out, you need to know how to stay safe and hydrated along with not turning into a stop light at an intersection. Our body temperatures can only sustain certain levels of heat for so long before we have heat strokes. One of the best I know of is Cold Showers. For me in my experiences, they're a lifesaver and can prevent skin from peeling after a rough sunburn. I don't particularly wear sunscreen for certain reasons but one of them is because I get burnt even faster when I have it on it doesn't matter what brand. After a cold shower, it balances everything out and gives me a natural tan from being in the sun.

As you know or may have read, taking a cold shower can help regulate body temperature and keeps the skin smooth, when it gets really hot out and you've taken hot showers beforehand, it can develop dry skin and potentially cause you to sunburn much faster which in turn can be very painful. Finding that balance isn't easy to work on but when you know how to keep yourself from overheating and regulating temperature even on the hottest days of the year, it feels quite nice. I'm not saying you should go out and get so much sun, that can only last so long before you need shade and/or need to jump into a lake or the ocean. 

Take it upon yourself to take cold showers whenever possible and keep your Core Temperature at a level that can be sustained throughout the day and depending on your body's intake of water, drink it as much as you can and stay hydrated. It is an important time this summer to be ready for the unexpected and be safe, take care of each other and let's not get to a point where we ask ourselves "you want that in original recipe or extra crispy" when it comes to our bodies. 

The Heat Is On

 

Record setting temperatures happening around the Pacific North West and it just keeps getting hotter. Finally settled in after several weekends of packing and moving stuff into storage. Trying to stay cool as possible. Can't remember the last time I've taken as many cold showers as I have lately. Got in my sprints this morning which was still in the high 80's outside, 5 bursts at 20 seconds each time.

It has been a tough process and the stress levels are starting to die down a bit. We managed to finally finish things and Wednesday is officially the last day of renting our first home together. It's bitter sweet but good things are on the horizon and time to save up again but this time for our own home. The last 4+ years have been a hell of an experience.

Despite the scorching heat and all of the move being done, I've been getting in some workouts that are more of mini workouts (while still doing sprints 3x a week) and doing them for a few minutes to exercises throughout the day. After taking stuff to our other place and packing up storage yesterday, I managed three short workouts that actually went pretty good and didn't wear me out.....

3 Rounds of 10 Rollouts w/ the Power Wheel and a Power Wheel Bear Crawl as a superset

5 minutes of Picking Up & Dropping my 50 lb Sandbell

The final workout was 100 Reps with a 30 lb Kettlebell

Didn't want to go crazy because of the heat and the work we've been doing but still eager to keep myself fit lol. Today on the sprints wasn't too bad and didn't feel like I was dying but I'm glad I did them in the time I did, it's supposed to get up to 105 today and there's no way in hell I'm doing that when it's that hot.

If you live in the PNW, stay cool, drink water consistently throughout the day and get the most out of life. Even in the middle of a heatwave, there are some awesome things to do. Be safe out there and stay hydrated.  

When You Can't Sleep

 There are times where you just feel restless and just have this level of hyper-active energy that needs to be let out in order to relax and fall asleep. At about midnight or so last night I just had this burst of energy that I needed to get out. While watching a wildlife documentary series I had the urge to do some Animal Movements. Got into my Animal Dice Game and did double reps per animal, took a breather and walked around if needed to recover but kept going for maybe 20 minutes or so. 

I wouldn't say this is the first choice for most people and doing something else might work better for you but my instincts kicked in and just needed to move around and burn off some energy. Felt incredible afterwards and had a big endorphin high. I've always been a night owl so something like this isn't uncommon for me but it's been a while since I did Animal Moves in order to calm down my body. 

Not only does this burn up quite a bit of energy, it can stirrup some decent calorie burning throughout the rest of the night as you sleep. To me, it's a fun way to make sure I don't feel like I'll be tossing and turning all night which does happen often and getting in some exercise and a cold shower does have some great benefits. 

Animal Exercise is not just great for conditioning and developing functional strength but it also is a great calorie burner, creating greater HGH levels and the ability to wear you down in a positive way. If you ever need a way to get rid of that excess energy (other than the real fun thing to do), get up and move like a wild animal until you feel you've had enough. Be resourceful and do the best you can to get yourself to sleep well. 

This Is What You Train For

 Life is funny sometimes and yet it also has its tragedies, setbacks and forks in the road that can come out of nowhere and smack you right in the face. For close to two months, we've had some rough days and yet another has been added. Nearly 3 weeks after our accident, we were asked to vacate our house because of the owners wanting to renovate and update the duplex we live in. We could come back but the rent would be jacked up to what we can't afford. 

Every weekend since May 20th, we've had to pack up the house and put stuff into storage. My wife has been put through so much and trying to organize and storing stuff into boxes has been hard. My job basically is being the laborer and hauling the boxes to the car and into storage. As most couples, it hasn't been easy trying to stay on the same page on certain things but we've been doing our best to stay strong together since a lot of this move is just the two of us packing and hauling stuff. I'm so grateful for what she has done and her organizing skills are incredible and she's quite the hauler too when she moves some of those boxes.

I've helped people move ever since I was a kid and as I got older, I started to learn as I was training, it became more important to be in condition to help others when it is needed at any given time. When I haul stuff, I do my best to be quick and strong while remaining durable so I don't get injured. Can't help anyone if you're hurt and can't do anything. I've only been injured in a move only a couple times and comparing that to the amount of times I've moved friends and family, that's a pretty good ratio. This move is no different and I stick with the principles of moving as fast as possible while being strong from as many angles as possible and keeping as good of form as possible. Some stuff can be very awkward as you may have noticed if you've ever moved anyone.

It's one of the things that have always made me feel useful when I was needed. All that time spending on Step Up Workouts, carrying a 50 lb Sandbell, doing farmer's walks with a 70 lb kettlebell, the amount of isometrics being practiced, the conditioning, the grip work, the leg training, training to last as long as possible was all worth it to help a friend or a family member or even a stranger from time to time. This is what you train for.

Training for looks or a trophy is not always the most satisfying thing that you can hope for in your lifetime. Looks fade away, trophies collect dust and sacrificing your body for one or the other won't always make you feel good as you get older but to train to help other people, to put a smile on their face and give someone some comfort and letting them know they're not alone and doing things by themselves. Moving is stressful and there's going to be be days where you might go into a bit of a rage and just want to scream at the world but there's also going to be days where you feel the future is bright, a new chapter is unfolding and you get to create new memories somewhere else. 

We made this place our home for over 4 years, it was our first place together as a couple and we made it happen, now a new chapter is being turned and something new and amazing is within our grasp. We will be saving up for our own house this time and to never rent again. It will take time and we may struggle but if we can find a way to our first place, WE CAN find a way to own a home. A home that is meant for just us and a few additions to our family. This is a huge reason why I train the way I do and saving up as much as possible. 

Train to help others and when you're needed, make the most of what you can do. After all, everyone needs a little help and if that means hauling a few things to give someone a peace of mind, than everything you've done from a training POV was well worth it. 

Avoid Injuries As Much As Possible While Maximizing Your Training

From a general perspective, we are taught to give it everything we have, even on the brink of injury or even death. It's easy to believe that if you push yourself beyond your maximum effort, you'll get results that will blow everyone's mind. That's not always the case. Pushing to the brink of failure in just about anything can cause more harm than good especially when it comes to exercise. Even the legendary bodybuilder Bill Pearl has talked about never training to failure.

Maximizing your efforts in training doesn't necessarily mean to keep going until you puke your guts out or pass out due to exhaustion, trust me I know what it's like to nearly black out during a workout and it's not a good thing for your body. The idea is to get the most out of your training without the need to kill yourself and avoid injuries as much as possible. This means, resting as long as needed which varies from person to person, working a set that has you hitting reps where you have at least 2-3 left in the tank but not going any further than that, keeping the body as relaxed as possible without causing too much tension and breathing with efficiency throughout the whole session whether in a rest period or in a set. 

Certain exercises do need a level of intensity in order to create the results you're looking for but it's also important to understand where to draw the line with that intensity. You have read about the level of speed to time ratio for Hill Sprints but let's recap that: To get the maximum out of sprint, you need to have a good solid understanding of how much of a percentage in speed needed for the duration of a sprint, it's an experimental thing but once you know how fast you need to go, it's incredible what comes out of it. Normally a 10 second burst would be as close to maximum speed as possible that you can muster which would be roughly 70-80% depending on your fitness level, it's almost impossible to maintain that speed if you were to do a sprint for 30 seconds because if you were to try that, you could get injured or hurt your CNS more than anything. A 30 second sprint would be around 30-40% of your maximum speed, it's still a hard sprint but you're maintaining the pace of the speed needed for it to get the most of that sprint. I'm not an expert on this, I'm just looking at it from a logical perspective so it may be different for some people. 

Rest periods are crucial for maximum results because it's going to come down to your recovery and having the quality of rest to be at your best for the next set. This varies from person to person as well because some people are so damn fit that they can go for a good period of time without needing a rest period but from a general perspective, getting the most out of set and resting as needed goes hand in hand. If you're doing mini workouts, depending on your fitness levels, you might need to rest less because the workout isn't that long say like 10 minutes. If you're doing workouts that take about 30 minutes to an hour or more, rest periods might be needed more because you want to get the most out of the workout. Not everyone is a pro athlete or a world class Olympian so you have to figure out what works best to get the most out of your workouts. If you're an average person but tries to do anything close to what a world class crossfitter or powerlifter does, it could kill you or put you in the hospital. Rest when it is needed, if it's too short, you're not giving yourself enough time to be efficient but if it's too long, you might have lost some of the pace you normally can do. 

We can't avoid injuries 100% of the time (hell even getting out of bed or sitting too long can cause injuries) but we can do our best to minimize them to get the most of what we want to achieve. Giving something 110% in a literal sense makes no sense at all because you might as well be dead or broken if you believe in that or do that overall. Put in the effort that gives greater benefit to the results than the risk of an injury, if risking an injury is higher than the benefitted results that would be good in the long run, that's the wrong kind of training to do. 

Be smart about your training and get the most out of it without getting hurt or worse.   

1st Full Month Of Hill Sprint Training

 When you set new goals, certain things may not show up right away and they say the big results don't show until the 3 month mark. Well, I started Hill Sprint Training on May 17th and I think I've made some pretty good progress but still have a good journey ahead of me. I have been eating a bit differently and because of doing Hill Sprints, doing less intense workouts the rest of the time and getting the most of what's possible to do. 

I just decided that after a few years and wanting to test myself in hard sprints again, they've become a joy to do. I mainly do them in the morning or early afternoon 3x a week and keep the afterburn effect going the rest of the day which is a hell of a perk. I have also come up with a little progression system where I started out with 4 Sprints the first month and each week add 5-10 seconds per burst so the first week was 10 seconds, second was 15, third was 20 and the final week was 30 seconds. This is to help progress to go a little longer on the hill each week until I can practically do the majority or the full hill in 30 seconds. Each month I would add one sprint and use the same progression system of timing.

I am also training on two different hills in my area which gives a different feel in incline and to see what speed I'm best at depending on the time needed to maintain that speed. Soon I'll just be doing only one hill but for now, each one is fun to walk to. One is steeper than the other yet just as awesome to do. When I sprint, I do what's possible to run as hard as I can to maintain speed for a specific amount of time. That doesn't mean I sprint at 100% capacity, that's nearly impossible regardless of how good you are. Even the legendary Walter Payton could only maintain speed on a sprint for the amount of bursts he did in his prime. You can't run nearly as fast on a hill as you could on flat ground but it does still kick your ass.

Say you ran a sprint for 10 seconds, you could probably do close to your maximum capacity of speed which would be around 70-80% at best which on a hill is more than the average person can do. Now if you did a 30 second burst, your speed might go down to maybe 30-40% at best because to keep the pace for that long is something a lot of people don't realize. If you tried to do the absolute maximum of speed like you would in a 10 second sprint, you would start to slow down dramatically those last 20 seconds of a 30 second sprint and within those last few seconds you have, you might as well be jogging. If you knew how to maintain speed for 30 seconds, you'd be jacking up the heart rate and you'd be burning calories and fat like crazy. Whether it's 10 seconds or 30 seconds, go at the speed that is meant for that amount of time needed for that sprint. When I realized how to do that, it made a huge difference in how I sprinted and felt afterwards. 

For all intents and purposes, Sprints are by far the best exercise to burn fat like no tomorrow and burn calories over an extended period of time, even long after a sprint session. Regular cardio such as running on a treadmill does burn calories but only burning from the session and that's it. If you look at Sprinters as opposed to a marathon runner or Olympic Runners in the 1500 meters, there's a world of difference in physique and muscle to fat ratio. 

The first month may not have a huge difference in my physique but I do feel like I've dropped some fat and put on a bit of muscle but like I said, I think I've made some good progress and making small changes along the way. There's still some work to do but this is something I want to pursue at least right now for the summer and fall before winter hits. 

 

The Outlook Of Being A Nerd That Works Out

As a kid growing up, I enjoyed cartoons such as Batman The Animated Series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Alvin & The Chipmunks, Scooby Doo, He-Man and many others, read a comic here and there and played video games but it wasn't until I was older and really heavy into training and working out that these things in Pop Culture gave another meaning to how you can look at things in real life.

I wasn't called a nerd so much when I was school but as time went on, I just embraced that side of me and it makes working out that much more interesting. It's the imagination that gives me that drive and thinking like a superhero or a Jedi or Sonic The Hedgehog just thrusts into the element that you can improve with the use of the mind and body together. Many use the word nerd in a very derogatory sense but that's also because they don't understand what it's like to have that need of running from reality or seeing something so exaggerative that it becomes hero-like to a little kid. 

Certain aspects of Pop Culture such as Comic books show a fictional ideal of what society is in currently or the idea of what it could be in an alternate universe. Did you know the concept of the X-Men with Xavier & Magneto was the premise of the time centered around Civil Rights activists Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X? A time where certain people weren't accepted because of their race? A lot has changed in that time but there's still ideals that remain where we view the world from a certain perspective.

Now, what does all this have to do with working out or exercising? Well, imagine what it would be like to be the Flash and be able to sprint so damn fast that by the time someone said hello, that person would be in another town on the other side of the world maybe. What it would feel like to Heal like Wolverine and be impervious to injuries, could you imagine the type of athlete who had that ability or be able to train without getting injured? The true outlook of this is not always the workout aspects but the concept of understanding that if you were very fast and couldn't be caught, there's temptation there too but also the dream of being able to run from something so horrible that escaping is the only way. The healing ability is a favorite of mine because if I could heal like the man with adamantium claws, I wouldn't need to have surgery and have pins being put into my legs, my bones and surrounding tissue would just piece themselves together. It's the idea of looking at things and either wishing we had it or looking at it as to understand empathy for others who have sustained horrifying injuries.

Being a nerd helps understanding that certain aspects of pop culture have a lot of aspects of real life but in the exaggerated sense. No we can't levitate off the ground or fly without wings but we have things that make that possible such as anti-gravity and having suits that help you glide through the air without a parachute. The Noun aspect of a nerd is "a foolish or contemptible person who lacks social skills or is boringly studious" and the Verb is "engage in or discuss a technical field obsessively or with great attention to detail." The weird thing is, anybody can be a nerd and not have the stereotypical aspects of a fool with glasses and never having able to kiss a girl or boy along with the obsessed outcome of paying attention to detail. A nerd can look like anybody from a bodybuilder to a maid, a blue-collar worker, a bartender, an athlete or even a School Principle and not what a certain look people have.

Someone who trains but also has a vast love for Comics, Cartoons, Science, Music & other things can be some of the nicest people on the planet and share a common trait with those who also have a vast love for things like that. If you want to talk nerdiness and someone who also works out, look at Lou Ferrigno, the guy who went from an introvert and nearly deaf kid into one of the greatest superheroes ever seen on TV and yet has a collection of various Comics, Star Wars stuff and collectable treasures that even someone like Sheldon Cooper would envy. A nerd is just a human being like the rest of us, if he works out as well, it is another cherry on top of a bad ass Sundae. 

There are a lot of nerds out there who aren't weak and frail and are crazy strong and powerful. Don't make any mistakes about it, there's a lot of good people out there that have a view on life that is as crazy as a comic book, stranger than a cartoon and certainly a lot more interesting than any video game. The biggest perk of being a nerd that trains, you look at workouts very differently and more imaginative than just a person who works out. Embrace your nerdiness, be yourself and make the most of what is possible to have the best life. 

Finger Gymnastics: Taking Hand Conditioning To Another Level

You never know what you'll find on the internet when it comes to exercise programs and platforms based on Sports Training, Conditioning, Strength Building, Developing Flexibility and other stuff. When you see ad copies that promise this and that and show almost the same type of claims or exaggerate them to make them not only sound cool but make it sound they're the hidden secrets to the lost treasure or scrolls of the ultimate way to get fit yet around 99.9% of it is pure bullshit? Well, here's that .1% that does what it says it does and more.

For more than a decade now off and on, I've practiced what are called Finger Gymnastics based on the training principles of CoreForce Energy produced by Concert Virtuoso Garin Bader. Although the name Finger Gymnastics sounds a little quirky, it shows many aspects of Hand Conditioning, Dexterity Training, Finger Strength Training & Suppleness Training all rolled into one course. The exercises aren't just your typical form of Hand Exercises, they show how to use your imagination and throw your whole body into them in order to stay strong yet flexible without developing Carpal Tunnel. Matter of fact, these exercises have incredible chances of preventing Carpal Tunnel and arthritis. 

At first I used them to warm up or cool down to prevent injuries from doing various feats of strength which puts a lot of strain on the hands. I would also use them as a standalone workout to strengthen the tendons and ligaments in my lower arm. For the most part I use them to build dexterity in my hands because as you know as a kid, using my right hand was very difficult for me. If I had known these exercises when I was like 9 or 10 years old, who knows what I could've done that would very different today. These days, my dexterity in my right hand is far from ever being equal to my left but I have made tremendous progress over the years that it shows what I can do now as opposed to when I was a teenager. 

It teaches how to supple the wrists that are very unique and Finger exercises that strengthen the tendons to an extent that it could help develop strength to do Fingertip Push-ups, strengthen the hands for pull-ups, be able to grip harder without straining and if you're a rock climber, be able to move or hold onto something longer. These also have exercises that are great for those who are Musicians, Fighters, Baseball Players, Hockey Players, Typists, they can help with your Golf Swing, greater dexterity for Magicians, Massage Therapists or those who perform in Cirque Du Soleil.

Almost all the exercises can be used without any equipment and there's a great set of Putty that comes with the course that you can do all sorts of things with that is really fun to use. For many years, Garin has performed all sorts of acts and has done so without much injury and he can do Magic, play the Piano so beautifully it has to be seen to believe, do two finger push-ups with arms straight out, glide through the air on a silk curtain and perform other instruments with ease it's unbelievable. If there's one guy who has mastered many things and knows what he's talking about when it comes to conditioning and strengthening the body, it's him.

When I met him back in 2010, it was like seeing Picasso, Copperfield, a guru and a Mythic all rolled into one human being. The hours I spent with him will never leave me and I still do things he taught me that day as of right now as I write this. He's the genuine article and has a very positive outlook on life and training that you don't see in many people today. It was an honor just to even shake his hand let alone have conversations with him and absorb his knowledge like a Sponge. The way he moves and expresses his himself in the moment is a surreal thing to see and his dexterity, strength and coordination is just incredible. You'd be missing out big time if you didn't have Finger Gymnastics in your arsenal. 

This course IMO is the GOAT of Hand Conditioning bar none. These exercises are top of the line and will give you levels of energy and power that you probably haven't experienced before or experienced in many years.