Being Explosive And Powerful Using Sledgehammers

A major thing about having an implement that you can smash the shit out of a tire with is being able to load it up to a weight that makes you feel like you have the power of a god in your hands. It's an awesome and bad ass way to use progression training to develop strength little by little. The mighty hammers at Stronger Grip are the like the barbell and weights of the olden days where hard work was earned. Using a hammer is hard work whether on a job or as a training tool and it's not to be messed with. 

Now, having a fixed weight is awesome and some of the best boxers and fighters have had great success with working with fixed weight hammers and/or axes to take down insane trees. Loading up on a hammer though whether it's the Thor Hammer, Epic Sledge or the Tactic Conditioning version, is just beautiful in a productive violent kind of way. The different styles of swinging even down to the very micro addition or decrease of your footing will show you your weaknesses and your strengths through your coordination and awareness. Sometimes it can take just one thing to turn you into a testosterone fueled machine and I can't stress enough how strong you can get adding weight to a hammer.

Each version of a sledgehammer has their own perks in terms of developing your strength, conditioning, coordination and durability. When you hit the tire and the hammer bounces off, it creates a shock to your hands and if you can't keep a firm grip on the handle, I don't want want to know what could happen if that sumbitch flew right out of your hands. That's the true aspect of having insane grip strength; you can do an insane amount of pullups, crush an ironmind gripper or do brutal fingertip pushups building those Eagle Claws but the amount of strength needed to move a heavy fucking hammer is in a class all by itself. 

Some will see it as a little toy you like to play with but if you want to call it a toy, than to us crazy bastards, it's a toy of Norse Legends & Gods. A toy is a little plastic figurine or a tool that even an ant can lift, Hammers are the tools that turns boys into men and men into another form of a powerful human being. Once you get a hold of one and consistently use it, you'd probably have to control shaking someone's hand so you don't break something. Again, there's no implement more intimidating and full of strength and power than the awesome Sledgehammer. 

Some of Ryan Pitts' Hammers vary in weight (empty or completely filled) depending on the kind you get. All will make your grip a force to be reckoned with but each implement showcases different aspects of Strength: The Thor Hammers can be used as a thicker version of Indian Clubs that forces you to squeeze your hands with great intensity, Popeye will be impressed with the results that range filled weight from 30-70lbs. The Tactical Hammer is a smooth handled implement that is used mainly for conditioning purposes and bring forth the power of an old time stone breaker; this hammer has a filled weight to about 25-30 max. The Epic Sledge (the mecca of sledgehammers) is the most beastly of all of these Hammers. The head alone is massive and the handle is slightly thicker or just as thick as the Thor Hammers so imagine the strength needed just to work with. This comes in 26 lbs empty, larger than the average size hammers and can be filled to the brim weighing up to 100 lbs. Imagine the type of grip you can posses just repping that hammer at 50 lbs or more. This is a hammer that even the mightiest gods will be impressed by and bring the power of John Henry into your soul. 

Become explosive, have the grip strength of a deity, have a workload that will even have the most elite athletes gasp for air in a matter of seconds. You guys deserve to be strong and you have the right to have the right tools in your hands. With a hammer in your hands, you shall become more than you can possibly imagine.

Grip Strength And What It Says About Health

 Having a solid grip while shaking hands with someone is known to be a form of confidence at a higher level. Strength in our hands and fingers can also be a process of longevity. Grip Strength according to researchers has great potential to predict our overall health and well-being. As we get older, the stronger we are in the grip aspects, the greater chances of blasting through diseases like cancer.

While maintaining muscle mass, it also indicates a strong importance of mobility and strength. If we lose muscle, we also lose mass. I'm only less than a couple years shy of 40 and need to keep up with what I do for as long as I can because after hitting the big 4-0, muscle mass will start going little by little each year from then on. Some say it happens after 25, some will say 35 but 40 seems to be the majority among those that research. A powerful grip is a large indicator of longevity so it's apparent we do our best to keep that intact. 

A study done in 2015 which 142,000 grip measurements were taken, along with obtaining info that tested ongoing diseases showed some pretty interesting results. It was suggested that for every 11 lb decrease in grip strength was a 16% chance you could die at a higher percentage from any cause. There are ways to measure our grip but there are great ways to build it as well using various tools while keeping a solid level of overall strength training as we age. Smashing a tire with sledgehammers builds incredible grip strength and also builds insane conditioning. Working with a Thick Bar or implements such as Fat Gripz you can attach to pull-up bars, barbells, dumbbells or even handles like with the TNT Cable System. One idea is about as simple as you can get is what John Brookfield has demonstrated where you take a towel and put in a bucket full of water, elongate it and start twisting the water out of the towel until it dries. This will fire up your forearms like crazy.

Building muscle and maintaining it can go a long way more than just looking good, it could be life saving and keeping things in order has great potential to keep you from getting injured easily and keeping your organs strong for a long time. Grip Strength is a piece of a big puzzle that continually comes together in order to live a quality life. Stay away from the steroids and find resources that will help you stay strong for many years to come. 

Stay strong, build some mighty mitts and be amazingly awesome. 

How Many Strikes Does It Take To Build Muscle With A Sledgehammer?

One of the things I love about Physical Culture and Fitness overall is being able to research things and finding various resources on training to help give me ideas on what could work and utilizing it in my own way. Doing research and actually testing things out is a big step to finding what could work for you and gaining a perspective from other aspects of training. With that said, there's also an overwhelming side of the coin when it comes to researching and learning things because many put their own spin on what works and how they obtained info and is it possible to trust that info?

Let's face it, when you research certain topics in the world of working out, you're going to get a lot of posers, arm chair shmucks, ghost writers and even dumbasses that claim they know what they're doing but all they do is talk a good game while spewing crap that is completely irrelevant (like bluntly revealing how much you hate your wife or talking shit about other people that have nothing to do with you). The marketing skills can be very immaculate and have the best looking format to tell you how great a method is but in reality, there are far more rip offs than original ideas. 

I'm not the biggest fan of set and rep schemes because everywhere you look, it may seem reasonable but a lot of it is crap and it's not about how it builds muscle or endurance or to test your conditioning, it's really an arbitrary number for specific purposes but yet tries to generalize the idea. Very few people have great ideas on how to utilize a set and rep scheme that not only works but gives the majority of people great benefit. When it comes to Sledgehammer Training, there's really very few who have any actual knowledge. 

People want to compare this type of training to an actual job in the Labor world when there's no comparison whatsoever other than the fact you're hitting something. It's two very distinctive animals that have very different aspects of strength, endurance and metabolic protocols. Yes, working with a sledgehammer will build crazy strength and will have you huffing and puffing like the Big Bad Wolf trying to blow down a brick house but those who actually work for a living with a sledgehammer have a a very different level of strength and work a distinctive swing that keeps them going all day instead of an hour or so at a time. That's like trying to compare Slim The Hammerman to a regular guy who trains with Sledgehammers. Slim will destroy that guy any day of the week and twice on sunday even after his prime. 

So for training purposes, let's understand the aspects of Sledgehammer Training when it comes to building muscle. There isn't a single way to do it but a variety of ways. One of the things that I prefer (even though I've written in the past isn't a favorite per se) is high rep training to a degree. You can also do it as a way like sprinting (going as fast as you can for a small period of time and resting for the same amount of time or longer) or in a tabata like style. A key to remember is that to keep things even, you do have to switch the underhand to work hard. I prefer the deck of cards approach where you can count your strikes that way and for each type of card you can do a different style swing. I learned the different styles of swings from the Late Bud Jeffries. 

I have done hammer workouts that lasted well over an hour and some barely 30 minutes all together but either way, I always felt strong, worked and most of the time hungry as hell afterwards. Also there's the speed aspect where the heavier you go, the less speed you'll generate and it just becomes more of a strength format. If you've done a lot of reps with say a 10-25 lb hammer at a solid clip, there's no way in hell you'll be at the same speed with a 50-70+ lber. I've done 1000+ rep workouts that took me 30-35 minutes but the last time I did that was with a near 60 lb hammer and it took me nearly 2 hours to complete which I never did again. 

Will you build muscle working with a sledgehammer? Absolutely but it depends on how you do it and what you're striving to do. How many reps would it take to get there? That also depends on what you want to do. Some people would do great with working for a period of time and using quality rest periods and recovery, others have incredible muscle come in from doing High Reps. Could you do it everyday? That depends but for safety sake, let's go with 2-3 times a week. In my time of consistently using the cards, I did hammer workouts once every 3-4 days because it's really fucking taxing and your body needs to rest. My goal at the time was to add weight every time I beat the deck. Sometimes it took 4 workouts to do it which meant to beat the deck it took up to 3 weeks to be able to finish in one workout. 

Do what works for you to build the muscle you want to achieve. Work your ass off but be careful to not hurt yourself breaking your back and tearing up your rotator cuff. I've never experienced injuries doing this kind of training and I've worked up to a near 73 lb hammer. Be mindful and only do what you're capable of doing and progress with intentions on recovering and resting with great quality. It's not the same as a job that has guys working 12-16 hours a day and jarring the body with very little recovery. 

Remixes, Covers & Reboots

It seems these days, a movie reboot is just part of the process of showing a new generation what was old is new again and vice versa. Yeah, there's hardly an original idea anymore and it seems certain places don't even begin to try to manifest something that can be considered legendary. The problem isn't always what can be originally, it's usually the people who love the original and almost nothing more because it was either too great or it just goes by the wayside to become more of a cult classic than something meant for anyone to enjoy. 

Music can be considered the same way. You have so many cover songs and remixes that we forget what's even original anymore or think it's original but it's really a reboot of a song in a different tone and the way the lyrics are used. Does that mean the song is terrible? It depends on who's doing it. The funny thing is, the remix or cover can often times be far better than the original ever was. Take for instance, a good song by Bob Seger called Turn The Page; solid song and has a soft tone to it, almost calming (to an extent) and not a big epic style like he did with Old Time Rock & Roll that became the stuff of legends. Now, take the same exact song lyric for lyric and get a band like Metallica to do it that just puts goosebumps on your arms and fires up your soul and you got yourself a bad ass song. 

Another set of songs I enjoy from time to time are Disney Songs; I grew up on them and have fond memories. They're enjoyable and yeah the lyrics from the old school films (we're talking early 70's and before) are a little questionable in terms of dark undertones and some racial pointers but they're catchy. Even films during the Disney Renaissance were awesome in their own right from Hercules' Go The Distance to Scar's Be Prepared always gave me goosebumps. Some people today even the most mainstream artists will do their own version of the original songs and make them their own but others just come along and make them feel like you are ready to take on the world and go into a battle that you're willing to fight for. Almost like a Viking, Mongolian or even an American Soldier ready to take charge and fight. That's where artists like Jonathan Young & Peyton Parrish come in. 

Now what in the wide wide world of sports does this have anything to do with working out or fitness in general? Well, if you really think about it, many courses, classes, bootcamps and even seminars are reboots and/or remixes of what was already done. There are so many exercises that have been done and rehashed that it's ridiculous at times but we still buy them as if there's some magical potion or secret that they have within the pages or videos. From bodyweight training to powerlifting to isometrics to yoga or sports training they all have in hand in being used by the same exercises or variations and put into different perspectives to utilize for the goals needed in those types of training. 

You can take a set of exercises that people might be interested in, put them into a book or DVD or even make a series on YouTube and program your perspective and marketing ability to them. Some people do very well with it and are very successful, others try to pass it off as if it was the golden ticket to fitness god-hood and oversell what potentially can be dangerous and psychotic. Which one ends up being the best for you? However, you can take something that was originally done and put into a perspective where the rep/set scheme is better, there's other forms of information and there's variations people can start or advance with that works better than the original ever did. Kind of like a Movie or Song. 

Some exercises remain a focal point and can be used in progressions to create something better later on. Some use low basic skills and stay there while others progress to a more advanced style where only a fraction of a fraction of the population can possibly handle but all in all, the perspective is different but certain things remain the same in the regard of carrying on something that works and has worked for a long time. Find what works for you and make the most of it. If you enjoy it, that's awesome and I hope it brings you kick ass benefits, if it's not for you, don't force it. 

To find some of the best resources look no further than the right side of this blog. These are top of the line from some of the most knowledgeable people today and those that have passed on. Can't find what you're looking for, shoot me a message and I'll do the best to my ability to help you find the resources you need. Stay strong, kick ass and be amazingly awesome in your journey. 

Harnessing Your Individuality When It Comes To Training

We all had a hero in some form or another growing up as kids and we admire certain people as we get older but as time goes on and we learn a thing or two, harnessing our own individuality can be a tough gig yet it's part of a necessity that many loathe and can't stand. Some will go to extremes to be like somebody else (HOLLYWOOD wink wink) whether it be in business, fitness, movies, sports or whatever. We tend to promote ourselves as one of a kind but also put too much emphasis on who we are expected to be instead of putting emphasis of who we are and what makes us a unique person.

The reason many can't stand or loathe people being their true selves because mainly they're afraid of their own soul and that being an individual with a single point of unique traits is very hard to achieve. Almost anyone can act out or program themselves to be somebody else because it's easier than building yourself from the ground up. Fitness is right up there with that kind of approach.

When I was growing up, I wanted to be like Michael Jordan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Barry Sanders and other cool actors and athletes that looked larger than life. In reality, I was short, stocky and about as unathletic and uncoordinated as can be. I wasn't that good at Basketball, couldn't look like a bodybuilder if I tried and I didn't have the aggressiveness to play football. Those traits prevented me from doing a lot of what I wanted to be. As I grew up and learning what my strengths and weaknesses were, little by little things fell into place of what I expected and accepted of myself as opposed to what I was told to be and how to do things by others' standards and expectations.

Once fitness became a part of my very existence, I made a vow to myself to learn everything possible and focus on creating my own style from the things I learned. I've mastered many exercises but don't follow a trainer or guru to the T, I learned how to strengthen my body without the aid of Physical Therapy and never once used a Personal Trainer to show me the ropes. I learned to harness my individuality and continuing to evolve. Is it perfect and is my way meant for everyone? Hell no. Once you understand the value of not trying to be exactly like a Michael Jordan or Arnold or Barry Sanders, you learn the true meaning of being able to strengthen yourself inside and out. Another is, these people are the GOATs of their chosen sport or acting, you can't have the same exact accolades or try to be the way they were. There are people out there with better skills and have more titles to their name but don't have the same recognition. 

We train to better ourselves, not to showoff and try to be better than somebody else. We win, we lose and we're human with different capabilities, traits and fortitude. You can make it known what you're capable of and have a great level of strength, conditioning and a powerful will but in the end, you and you alone are the very best at what's happening right now. Certain things will fade and adjust to what comes next but never underestimate the power of your own individuality. Learn to progress and grab a hold of what makes you the best version of you. You can be a great wrestler and do all sorts of moves and submissions, you can be a great powerlifter that sets records and have strength beyond belief or you can develop an all around level of anything you set your mind to. Your training is what you develop to do something great later on no matter how big or small, victories come in all shapes and sizes. 

Be an individual of your own accord and make the most of what makes you great. It's a long journey but it doesn't have to be boring or so extreme that it becomes unrealistic. It can be interesting and you'd be surprised what you're capable of if you just open up your soul and become something you were meant to be because it's you and no one else. 

Different Conditioning Styles By Wrestlers

If anyone laid the foundation for wrestlers and how they condition themselves in the sport, it was arguably Wrestlers from the Middle East & India hands down. They taught the fundamentals of how to utilize the body to such a degree that stamina was inexhaustible, strength lasted for hours on end and being explosive was inevitable at any given time. They created what is still being used today just through certain variations.

The thing is, not every wrestler or coach uses the same exact exercises or even principles of their training to be successful in the sport. Some conditioned according to their size and what gave them the tools to be successful. Now in modern times when it comes to conditioning or even more specific, bodyweight conditioning, there were the three main forms of exercises that were the ground work; the pushups, the squats and the bridges. Those were the pinnacle aside from actual wrestling but there was more to them or in better terms, what other wrestlers and coaches took into consideration that honed the skills and the ideal training methods. 

Every culture since ancient times has their hand in wrestling in some form or another and formed their own ideas on how to condition the men to fight in order to be dominant in a tribe, kingdom or just a village for that matter. In Mongolia you didn't see wrestlers do Hindu Pushups or do Hindu Squats in order to condition, yet some of these were so powerful, it was unbelievable. There were cultures that if you look throughout history, probably didn't do a single supplemental exercise and just wrestled and were just as strong and dominant. Look up how Senegalese Wrestlers sometime and check out their methods.

In America, you had some of the best wrestlers in the world that came from everywhere and took their skills to places that just baffled onlookers. Some of the greatest in history utilized more of a weight training approach, some used a mixture of bodyweight and weights, bodyweight alone and some either ran or just wrestled in order to get in condition. The fact of the matter is, regardless of how you wrestled, you used basic exercises and often times compound movements to be successful. Once Karl Gotch came into the picture, his use of the Hindu Style became a requirement in most wrestling gyms since the 60's or even as far back as the 50's when he was being groomed but if you look at the ideals of conditioning the body for the sport, at least from an American point of view, the Hindu Style wasn't written up as much if at all.

Although many exercises can be traced back to the Hindu Style, you didn't see their version of the pushups & squats along with others in the old Physical Culture courses from the likes of Farmer Burns, George Hackenshmidt, Bernarr McFadden, Earle Liederman and others. At least two of these guys were very successful wrestlers in their time but you never saw the Hindu Style of conditioning. Also with that in mind, wrestling styles vary from culture to culture. Mongolia had more of a Greco-Roman/Judo type style, Senegal was grappling mixed with boxing or bare-knuckle type fighting, Hindus were a close relationship to our modern Amateur Wrestling and today's Catch Wrestling is utilized with Submissions and overall base of takedowns, suplexes and throws. Then you have styles from Turkey, Brazil, Japan and Russia that vary the rules of combat. 

Is the Hindu Style the very best? That all depends on the coach and what they're willing to teach students of the art. It certainly works in many aspects but if it was the very best, every wrestler since the dawn of man would do it but they don't. Today's aspect of conditioning for MMA still has its roots that trace back to India but with the concept of utilizing more explosive based conditioning than just stamina and strength based, there are countless ways to be a successful combat athlete or even a wrestler for that matter. The Hindu Style works without a doubt but there should be options to how we base our training according to the needs of the athlete. Look at the success of Dan Gable and the University Of Iowa, their style of conditioning wasn't like the Hindu Style but what did they produce? Some of the greatest wrestlers that went on to Olympic glory. 

Last thing, there are wrestlers out there that are so fanatical on conditioning they base their livelihood on it. I do believe the better condition you are, the higher chances of being successful but it's not always the supplemental stuff that will get you there, hell even Ed Strangler Lewis had said that wrestling was the best conditioner and despite the fact that he wasn't shredded or had the body of a Greek god, his stamina was the stuff of legends. The man in his prime just didn't know the meaning of the word "tired", he can go for hours and be practically just as efficient towards the end of a match as much as the beginning. 

You be the judge, what do you feel makes a successful wrestler?    

Rippers & Hookers

Sounds like a bad serial killer novel involving the world's oldest profession doesn't it? The funny thing is, it's far from what you might actually think. Back in the day, wrestlers who were known to literally break and tear people apart were called Hookers where they would hook or put an opponent in a dangerous hold where they could if given the chance cripple the guy and be one feared motherfucker. You would not want to get on the bad side of these guys.

These days, nobody would use the term hooker to describe a wrestler, now the word ripper is another story. Like the Hookers of yesteryear, a ripper can be used to describe a wrestler or grappler who could handle himself and tear limbs, tendons or ligaments. Some of the most feared wrestlers of the day were guys like Farmer Burns, George Tragos, Ad Santel, Tom Jenkins and even the legendary Robert Fredrick aka Ed "Strangler" Lewis. These days, the last of the Hookers or Rippers of the old school were men like Karl Gotch & Billy Robinson. 

The men I mentioned above were specialists in knowing the dark side to physical anatomy and could make you tap before you really had a chance to take a breath. These were WRESTLERS and had levels of stamina and mind that they were considered inexhaustible geniuses of their time. Catch Wrestling has it's roots mainly in England for the last 150 years but long before that, you had other cultures that would showcase styles of wrestling that were brought to other countries and became a molded sculpture in today's world. The old timers are long gone and quite a bit of their style of Catch has been left in the dust. 

Now in today's world, Catch Wrestling isn't as big as it used to be and other arts such as Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing and Amateur Wrestling dominated the landscape in how we see today's MMA. If BJJ is considered the "gentle" art, Catch is considered the violent aspect according to Former MMA champ and current Catch Teacher Josh Barnett. There are competitions purely on Catch and has taken extremely small steps to becoming a larger form of fighting since the early 1900's. You can arguably say the last known competitor in the art was Billy Robinson. The man would be considered the Einstein or Steven Hawking of Catch Wrestling. 

Although the hookers and the rippers don't have that fear factor today, you can still learn some form of that old school style with a small group of fighters, teachers and students of the old art. It's used more of a competition but can it be used in the streets? Afterall, street fights are very unpredictable and sometimes what you may think you know could get you killed or be sent to the hospital but if you were able to not necessarily make a shmuck tap but to save your life using techniques that won't kill the man but put a damper on the limbs he uses would it be worth it? Would it be worth it to save a loved one, defend yourself against attackers or send a message telling them not to fuck with you (in the sense of not upping up somebody like a douchebag but making sure you're not some weak punk). 

Now if you're in law enforcement, would certain techniques help restraining a suspect or defending a fellow officer? Catch can be used in many ways and possibly lifesaving if it came down to it. There are people out there who may understand Catch but wouldn't know how to use it, others have incredible knowledge and have great success, it just depends on whom you learn it from. There isn't a one-way of learning this art and everybody who teaches it especially today can be a gamble as opposed to back in the day where you could go just about anywhere and learn from the masters. All in all, whether a competitor or someone going down on the wrong side of town, Catch can be beneficial.   

 

Layers Of Strength Like Super Saiyan Transformations

For years now, I've been a Dragon Ball fan of the Saga. It's really the only anime I like that didn't include Street Fighter as a kid. Similar story to Superman with a twist and has Martial Arts, powerful warriors, rivals, match-ups, foes become friends, Vegeta always wanted to be ahead of Goku but never really does and the training clips are just bad ass especially in the Gravity Chamber. It's one of the inspirations for my own training and finding some cool things to try out.

 One of the cool aspects of the Shows is the transformations guys like Goku and Vegeta go through to become more powerful than usual. The levels of Super Saiyan are just an awesome blend of animation and the fighting internally they go through to achieve their transformations and making them effortless later on. It's a way of looking at strength progressions in fitness, there are several layers and as you get stronger, there's always another layer coming your way to push through. 

Yeah it's corny and has some off the wall characters (Master Roshi anyone) along with situations that may not be suitable for even today's generation unless you watch the uncensored versions. The fact remains, with each transformations the Saiyans generate, it's a progression that at first takes a lot out of them and as they master them, they become effortless and doesn't take on a ton of energy or in their case strength. With each time you master a weight or a certain exercise, you would progress to a heavier weight or version of an exercise that's harder in order to become your strongest. 

Yeah it's a cartoon and we can't look exactly look like Goku or even withstand a Gravity Chamber that goes up to 400x the gravity of earth (if you were to calculate that, it be walking into a room and you weighing hundreds of times your bodyweight) but we can build strength and muscle using things like weighted vests to do our bodyweight exercises or do exercises with greater control and slower. Guys like Matt Schifferle & The Bioneer are awesome at teaching progressions in order for someone to build their strength on and guys like Brooks Kubik utilizing old school weight training and bodyweight exercise to build a great deal of muscle using progressions on a consistent basis. 

Although Goku & Vegeta have completely different views on life and progressive training, they still become stronger in their own way and format different purposes. That's what it's like in the real world where you can progress in your own way but still reach levels of strength beyond belief. Now what they do is obviously exaggerated and very fictional but it doesn't take away the fact that it is possible to build strength and muscle with the right tools and training programs. Many struggle especially with the consistency and discipline but it's not impossible. Like a transformation, you can also transform your level of strength and physique. The old time strongmen who were no more than on average 165-190 lbs were some of the most muscular people on the planet yet had strength that baffles by even today's standards. It's incredible what you can achieve when you give yourself the time and dedication.

Look past some of the silliness and dialogue and understand what some of these guys do in that Saga that gives them abilities that just seem to go higher and higher each time. When you thought one of the transformations made them crazy powerful, another one comes along and just becomes even more mind boggling. Even the transformations become God-like later on; you can have some crazy strength as well (without the need of steroids of course) and harness the ability to find out what the body is truly capable of. Of course I believe in safety and doing things without getting injured as much as possible but we are capable of things we didn't think were possible. In a weird way, we have a bit of Super Saiyan strength where each progression is another step to being the strongest we can be as a individual. 

Be strong, power up and be amazingly awesome. Only a couple days left of the Big Sale at Lost Empire where you can get an awesome 20% OFF your order when you use the code FALL2022 at checkout. Get on it guys, these are some of the best herbs, tinctures and capsules around today.  

How Do I Keep My Lower Arms, Hands & Wrists Strong

 As a human being, we are responsible for what types of strength we develop whether it be physical, mental, emotional and/or spiritual. Some don't always get to even choose that responsibility because of either birth defects or other things but if you're compelled and learn to work with what's possible, there are many ways to strengthen yourself.

Strength is not always measured by a cannonball shaped bicep or having washboard abs that look good in a magazine, it really is measured what the body can handle and be able to do things that require sometimes a great deal of effort in order to provide the strength needed in life. The hands for one is probably, arguably one of the most prominent aspects of strength that we don't always understand the true meaning of it. We build things with our hands, we can clip hair like it's electric with such precision and speed, we destroy things, we test a man's grip with a simple shake, we lift and hold onto things as if our lives depended on it. Our hands are the ones that turn the knob to a world of possibilities.

When I was in my teens, I didn't have thick forearms or crazy strong hands and wrists even though I threw the shot put and the discus along with some mediocre weight training. I didn't understand the value of grip strength and hand health until I started learning feats of the old time strongmen. The first people to show me this were Logan Christopher & Tyler Bramlett. They showed me how these small guys like Dennis Rogers & Mighty Atom were able to bend, twist, break and shape steel with such power it looked effortless yet impossible to look at. They were the first men to teach me steel bending short and long along with leverage work and utilizing the flexion and extension of the hands. If these small dudes can teach me how to do things that men twice their size can barely even touch, that gave me the reason to be able to do it too.

For years, I've bent hundreds of spikes, tore through dozens upon dozens of phonebooks, levered sledgehammers and shaped flat bars and rebar till my hands bled (literally) and those were the foundation of making my hands crazy strong, durable and powerful. My fingers would feel like bone, my forearms were hard as stones and my wrists had strength yet were flexible and limber. As time went on in the midst of doing these crazy feats, I started studying more on how to keep the lower arms healthy and as pain-free as possible. When I was learning the unorthodox and strange ways to train using Garin Bader's CoreForce Energy, he also had a course specifically for the hands called Finger Gymnastics. You've all read about my dealings with the meningitis and how it shaped my nerves to the point where dexterity in my right hand is almost impossible with using individual fingers. With FG, it gave me tools that I never was able to learn before as a child and it showed how I can use my hands differently than what I was attempting during therapy sessions. It opened up a new world to me that was unbelievable.

As I got older and shifting away from the strength feats, (is a comeback in the works?) I had put my effort into a more movement based type training and for the last 10 years or so, working with sledgehammers has been my go to for hand strength and conditioning. I also found the Fat Gripz useful as I use them from time to time with my resistance cables to really dig into the muscles and build grip strength at the same time. I've used them also on machines, barbells and dumbbells. Slowly but surely overtime, my hands just kept getting stronger and rarely if ever got injured. 

Because of the sledgehammer work, it has even helped me in arm wrestling; faced all three generations of my wife's family (father, brother and grandfather) as they all challenged me and I won. This family also comes from several generations of loggers and heavy laborers so they have incredible strength in their blood. Neither of them were easy either especially her grandfather who tried to pull my arm off for a second or two but to didn't let up. That was a defining moment where they were like "ok this guy is good for the girl in our lives" in my opinion. Gramps still has that "old man strength."

In a nutshell these days, hammers, fat gripz, occassional fingertip pushups and walking like a gorilla has kept my hands pretty damn strong and healthy. Keeping the wrists limber as much as possible and fingers just keep getting stronger. I have also kept an eye doing joint loosening exercises especially in the hands and wrists for a while now because as we age, we won't always be able to do the crazy shit we did but if we kept our joints healthy, that's what makes living the more important. Be strong, build strong hands and be amazingly awesome. 

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More To Exercise Than Just Stationary Movements

When you have a certain amount of knowledge about exercise and fitness along with the understanding of what works and what is useful, you have the ability to train anywhere you want and not be restricted to a building full of people who can be nasty as hell (verbally and physically). Stationary movements are basically exercises where you're in the same spot working on something and not going anywhere else. If it's just bodyweight, you can switch from one exercise to the next in the blink of an eye. 

It's great to do pushups, deadlifts, squats, curls, weights, bodyweight, machines and suspension training; they're all great in their own way and should be used for the goals people want to achieve and/or maintain throughout their lives, however; there's more to training than just staying in one spot. There's freedom in moving from one thing to another but the true freedom is being able to harness the body's capabilities beyond the stationary aspect of fitness.

The majority of fitness is training in a single spot on the floor or only a stupid short amount of space. Now with Animal Movement training or Primal style training, you have the freedom to move wherever you want, however you want. This is where you are truly open to using your imagination and not be confined to a such a short amount of space that you can't crawl, jump forward or backwards, sideways and under a magic carpet ride. It's about letting go of the caged up mentality. Do stationary movements have their place, of course they do, they're another aspect of training. It's not the full picture though.

Animal Exercises are a form of expression. Yes it's true we can't move 100% exactly like wild animals but as a human, we have the creativity to express ourselves in a different format than typical conventional training. We can crawl, jump, kick, punch, roll, lift, carry, hell we're practically a Wonkavator where we can go up, down, sideways, longways, shortways, bend, twist, go east, west, north, south and everything else in between. Indigenous tribes don't necessarily work out in the sense of recreation but when they hunt or go out to find food, they climb, crawl through the jungle, run, walk, utilize their body's abilities to take down trees, carve boats, fish with nothing more than a stick and string. They're expressing their bodies the way nature intended in order to survive. Fitness is just a recreational version of expressing our human nature and Animal Type Movements is to me the pinnacle of that. 

Some will look at Animal Movements as silly and "make believe" and that humans were only meant to stand up right and crawling and all that stuff is meant for babies in development. It is a huge part of our evolution to be upright and to lift, carry and be able to orchestrate movements based on human evolution but mimicking animals to a small degree is part of that as well. We've studied animals for countless millennia even when we didn't realize it and we partake in how we can move utilizing what we can do. Although Animal Movements can be considered a "gimmick" form of exercise, it's the freedom of expression that gets to the heart of it. 

Is it natural to move like an animal in the wild? Well, you are using your own body as resistance and it's not alien like formalities so you tell me. It's just different, that's all it is when you break it down. It's using the mind and body's ability to express a near exaggerated format of what we as humans are capable of doing. Some of the most basic movements can be done by just about anybody if you're in good health. The more advanced stuff is for the "crazy ones" which is a much lower percentage of people capable of doing. Even basic movements are still freedom of expression and be able to showcase your abilities to train in just about any length of space. 

So, when you practice your training, realize there's more to it than just being in a single spot. Utilize both to really become universal in your fitness journey. Your goals are yours and what you do to get better is what you're willing to do whether through Primal Movements or stationary, they're more valuable than we have been led to believe. Be strong, be wild and be amazingly awesome.

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The Twilight Of Fitness Fanatics

In fitness, there's always going to be critics, cynics, "experts" and some downright dumb motherfuckers that will tell you what's the best, what's the worst, how you should do things according to certain statistics and trends are crap and this and that. Where do you go to get the best really? What makes them the actual experts?

Sometimes I wonder if some of these fanatics or at times "extremists" have ever realized they're leading people on the Twilight effect: Are they team Jacob or team Edward (Weights vs. Bodyweight, Rubber Cables vs. Machines, Crossfit vs. Bodybuilding). Where does it end? The truth is, there's only so much someone can tell you before you make a decision for yourself. Will you be the wolf or the vampire for the title of "King of the Monster." 

We follow sometimes the old school ways of doing things and/or we try to keep up with the times and not try to get overwhelmed by the fast pacing world we live in. Some just prefer old school because that's how they grew up and what they knew best. Some of the old school ways weren't that great and sure as hell some of it should not be a part of today's world but there are lessons in them that we can learn in our world today. Keeping up with the times can be a royal pain in the ass and focusing on too many things especially with the crap we see, hear and talk about, it could put us in the nuthouse (if it hasn't already for some).

When it comes to fitness, being objective can be a bitch but we only know what we know and understand by trial and error. However; there are are those out there who only know a certain method but have no clue what other methods are about and yet try to convince people how terrible they are when they themselves never did them. When you start to look at things objectively and seeing both sides of the coin, you'll realize that it's not always Black and White (again Team Jacob or Team Edward) and both sides have their strong and weak points. The fact is, both sides of the coin have strong points you can take and mold them to create a stronger version of yourself. 

Throughout these last 17 years of training every single day, you know that my love is always bodyweight but yet will do things that suit the strong points of different styles to create a variety for myself. I don't preach one specific method and shun everything else, that's not what life's about. My approach is helping others find the best of whatever they want to do and focus on finding the best resources so they can achieve their goals, the same way I do for myself. Constantly finding exciting things to do to get better, changing things up to stay interested and enthusiastic. I'm not a team Jacob or team Edward (I'm more of the Blade, Underworld & Lost Boys variety LOL) yet both have their strong points. 

There is no one way to do things, you move, you lift, you carry, you transition, you build muscle and whatever, they all are part of a path that leads to somewhere. One method will never 100% cut it. If it did, where does that leave anything else for someone? Choose what you love and stick with it but don't be afraid to test out new things and doing so without going to extremes and getting hurt along the way. Be strong, be safe and be amazingly awesome. 

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Sprint 8 And Hammers

Being aggressive can be a good thing when you need to just let it out. Now we do need to control our aggression because we don't want to go as far as hurting someone or worse. Being productive in that is finding an outlet that will get shit out of your system safely and with good intentions. You can get into a fight but unless it's a last resort, we don't need to put anybody either the other person or ourselves in the hospital and regret getting that bill. 

Hammer Work is about as old school as you can get and there's a reason why it's one of the manliest things you can do. It builds Testosterone, it strengthens the tendons and ligaments, it's productive training and it freaks out Mormons (that last one was a joke). Let me give you a side story about the Mormon joke:

A while ago during a workout, I was using a deck of cards as my reps. Around the 5th card or so, these Mormon kids (one was in his mid 20's, the other was roughly a late teen) parked their car across the street and proceeded to go about their route to convert and spread the gospel of the Church Of Latter Day Saints (the church is literally right next to the complex). I was the first person they approached and one of them wanted to try out the hammer I was using (Big Barry 25 lbs). He liked it and gave a good critique on it as he did a couple swings (now remember, these guys are in nice shirt and ties with slacks on). I figured, I'd mess with them for a bit and brought out Big Bertha the 73 lb Hammer. The older of the two widened his eyes and said "you've got a bigger hammer than this thing" and I had him try it out. Didn't tell him how much it weighed, could barely even pick it up and couldn't swing it. He asked if I could do it and I did about 6-8 reps without breaking a sweat and he literally shouts out "HOLY CRAP" and the other kid whispered "holy shit" or something like that. Now imagine making two guys who are spreading Mormonism who've learned not to say certain aspects of language in their religion saying two aspects of words that would get them in trouble for saying them yet it took one big ass hammer to make them do that. That was one of the funniest things I've ever seen happen. That hammer freaked them out that much to resort to that.

Back to the article at hand....

Regardless of the rep/set scheme you use, hammers can do wonders for your conditioning and building muscle. Today I wanted to try out the Sprint 8 Protocol which was rep out something for 30 seconds on, 90 seconds off for 8 rounds. It was a pretty damn good workout and got me breathing hard and I can feel it in my forearms. The pump feels awesome. I've tried various styles of exercise with this method of training from animals to burpees to sprinting in place and others but the Hammer version felt great and was well rested and would go hard as I can each set. You get so many benefits out of it than just firing up the lungs, you build strength, grip, speed, conditioning, cardio and other kick ass things. 

The Sprint 8 Program in this day and age is more on the use of machines like treadmills, ellipticals and other things of that sorts and the course promotes mainly on those to help sell machines. Now does this mean the program isn't useful? Of course it is, you don't need a machine to kick your ass with this workout. Hell from what I understand Dr. Laurence Moorhouse created a similar program decades ago and worked for a lot of people. This program is done no more than 3x a week in my opinion but this method has people going up to almost 5x a week and I don't find that practical or safe because depending on the exercises you use and speed regardless of the rest period, you still need to recover from it. You can do other stuff on the off days for sure just not as intense. Recovery is what promotes growth and I'm talking optimal, not to the degree where you bust your ass on this workout than not do a damn thing for a month. 

Using hammers for this method, use a hammer that gives you the right amount of speed that will get you breathing hard, I would say anywhere from 10-30 lbs would be good for most. If you got the strength to use a heavier hammer than the weights I just mentioned and the speed of it is there, use it if you wish but the heavier you go, the slower the movement will be. Be wise and don't hurt yourself.

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Be strong, get conditioned and be Amazingly Awesome.

Flow Through Your Workouts

Going hardcore in a workout isn't always a bad thing and people just push themselves to the brink of collapse is the boost to their ego; but going hardcore doesn't always mean you should a lot of the time unless it "may be" a micro workout of some sorts. Flowing through a workout where you're challenging yourself but it feels to you almost effortless is one of the coolest things you can do.

These days because of the inspiration from Vahva Fitness, my brain has been fiddling with ideas and coming up with flows and combos, learning the flow routines from Vahva and developing better flexibility and agility with great energy and enthusiasm. It's almost like the excitement never stops and have used specific flows for my flexibility, conditioning and coordination. Taking a few exercises and putting them together to create something fun to do is what is keeping me coming back.

My favorite exercises to use in my flow training are the Over Reach, 180 Degree Jumps and the Scorpion. Utilizing these three with other exercises and you've got a hell of a foundation. I even will use them in a freestyle manner where they randomly go with other exercises in a workout where I come up with exercises on the spot. This routine I do here, would be considered freestyle since I didn't have the exercises in a specific order and was coming up with stuff at the top of my head.

Some workouts I'll just do a couple moves and just switch from one to the other like this demo of the Scorpion & Over Reach Combo to work my flexibility and coordination. One exercise I've learned lately that I'm still figuring out how to do properly is called in Vahva Fitness the King Crab. It's not an impossible move but to coordinate it and move in the manner can challenging since you're up off your heels and walk sideways. I did a video of just Holding The Position in an Isometric format to build strength so when I do more of the movement, I'm use to being in that position. I like to use themes every now and then and this move made me think of a scene in Fantastic Beasts: The Secret Of Dumbledore where the main protagonist has to go through a cave and these "Fire Crabs" are ready to strike him and he has to move like them to distract them. 

 When it comes to conditioning, flows can have a profound impact depending on how you do them. When you use jumping movements or crawls in a sprint like fashion while quickly switching from one thing to another can really fire up the lungs. A workout I did yesterday was a combo of the Scorpion, Over Reach and Bear Crawling. Do the first two moves than do a 5-10 yard crawl and walk back and repeat for as many rounds as possible. I did about 10 and that was enough. When you get out of breath, walk it off until it has subsided and keep going, don't sit down or bend over and heave, breathe deeply and keep things flowing. Vahva also has great workouts that target various muscle groups but also shows you step by step how to do a flow properly and progress by adding speed and smoothness. 

Another great combo that will get you out of breath is just crawling and jumping as in Crawl for a distance, get into a squat and do a 180 degree jump or just a regular frog jump and crawl back. Do that for 30 seconds to a minute and you'll be panting like crazy. You can see the video of that below. Workouts should never be boring and moving from one thing to another fast is a great way to get you going. Bodyweight Training is more than just simple pushups, squats, pullups and lunges; you can create things and open up a whole other door to exercising that is limitless and full of curiosity. 

If you really want the complete package and take on a whole plethora of challenges, flows, athletic specialization and conditioning programs, check out the Trinity Bundle from Vahva and combine them for workout regimens that will test even the most elite athletes. Be strong, get conditioned and be amazingly awesome. 

In The Words Of Karl Gotch Regarding Bodyweight Training And The Evolution Of Animal Movement Training

"Go back to nature and you'll find that animals in the wild are in the greatest of shape because they use their own bodyweight and stretching." That's what the old man said in Conditioning For Combat Sports as he narrates while his student Tom Puckett demonstrates the squats, jumpers and rope skipping. Although he preferred conditioning exercises from the wrestlers in the Middle East, it still doesn't take away how profound his words were to how animals are as strong, conditioned and powerful as they are. 

The profound impact knowing that the greatest teacher when it comes to natural exercise is nature itself. After studying and training on the teachings of Gotch and those that came after, it become an evolutionary transition from the pushups, squats, bridges, handstands and pulling exercises to the animal movements that have shaped my philosophy on fitness and it's history through physical application. It wasn't about moving away 100% from those exercises I learned at first but to generate interest and going down a path that led me to my all time favorite form of training. 

Sometimes words in a complete sentence are more than just letters put together or phrasing something that is simple. What I took from Gotch's words after really hearing them and interpretating them to my own goals and journey, it became clear that this is what I was meant to learn. I didn't really get into the animal stuff till I was 23-24 which was around 2008 and getting Ed Baran's Animal Kingdom Conditioning course at the time. This gave me the foundation for what these last 14 years of doing this specific style of training. Sure I did other things along the way and always experimenting but animal movement always pulls me back in and I can't help but do it. 

The more I got sucked into the physicality of animal moves, the more I wanted to learn from other places and how they interpret this style of fitness. Some of it is weird and some seemed like a rip off or taking one thing and morphing it into something else but the one place that takes those exercises and shaped them into an all-around athletic endeavor was Vahva Fitness. Eero Westerberg & Samuli T. Jyrkinen have taken bits and pieces of some of the very best teachings and molded them into their style that just keeps evolving. When you learn the true aspects of the course Movement 20XX there are similarities with the style of Animal Flow, Gold Medal Bodies, Primal Movement, MovNat but Vahva took them and shaped them to create something beautiful and incredible to watch and learn. 

Eero is a Finnish Trainer that's roughly in his 30's I believe. Although young and has a model type look, his enthusiasm and incredible athleticism is just unbelievable and can move with such power yet limberness. He's a poster boy for the current ideas on animal movement training but I say that with great sincerity. He can do some incredible things and have learned quite a bit from him by observing and testing out his style of training. Some of it is way to advanced for me and can't jump even 20% of what he can do (100% chance knowing that we're about 60-80 lbs apart and our way of moving is different) but I take in what he teaches and experiment with my knowledge and physicality. He utilizes old school methods in a modern setting that blends the two worlds together. 

Like him, I've taken bits and pieces of things and shaped them to my goals and have done pretty well with them. Is he the end-all-be-all? Hell no, nobody is but I love his passion for this stuff and continues to work hard on making the most of what the human body is capable of doing. Of course not everyone is able to move like him or be able to do everything he's capable of, fuck I wish I had half of his ability and I'd be happy but we all come in different shapes and sizes, move and train differently and go at different speeds of progression. As we age, we may not even move 65-70% of what we use to do but we can make a difference in how we shape ourselves physically and mentally. Train in ways that aren't the norm and explore our capabilities without risking our health. 

The quote in the first sentence of this article for me has evolved to exploring my body in ways I wasn't doing even in my teens and my 20's. At 38, I'm finding more and more ways to move like a beast in the wild or even format my own flexibility and agility. I'm losing weight, gaining strength through awkward movements, progressing little by little with my coordination and everyday is a chance to have fun and play. From a fitness stand point, there's no way of knowing what will happen and what will come next. All I know is, there's a whole universe to explore and the road just keeps going on.  

Be strong, get wild and be amazingly awesome. 

Animal Stretching & Flexibility

Would you believe that Animal Exercises go beyond just warming up or being used for conditioning? What if the method was used to help loosen up the muscles and joints in a stretching routine? Although mainly used for dynamic work, they can also be used in isometric fashion if you understand the mechanics. Most stretching routines are pretty boring and you look stiff as it is as opposed to actually being stiff and trying to loosen up. A good routine can be found here if you want to try it out.

My favorite exercises to really get the body going and have that relaxing feeling is utilizing the Bear Walk, Scorpion Rotation, Over Reach and various moves based on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, add in a few Yoga moves, concentrated stretches and working the spine, knees, elbows and ankles you've got it made. I don't really take breaks in the middle of this workout because I just transition from one exercise to another like a Flow and keep going. The objective is to not speed through it but pace as relaxed as possible, remember it's just mostly stretching.

You don't have to do the transitioning, that's just part of it. If you're new to it, doing them one at a time than two moves, than three and so on until you can do a continuation without having to stop. It's like building up a cardio like routine where you get the benefit of building stamina as you stretch and you can go as long as you need to. There's no limit, once you get the a good routine down for yourself, you can go into a regular workout or just practice flows and combos till you're done for the day. It's all up to you.

I can make an update video of a off the top of my head kind of routine but for now here's a video of a 5 minute routine I did a couple years ago to get you an idea (I've lost weight since then) but it's still a good set of stretches to do at just about anytime when you need it. Stretching should never be boring, it should give you the ability to wake up and feeling good. I've never been a fan of routines and just go with my instincts which works for me. Because of the type of memory I possess, I can take just about any exercise I know and do a flow style set. That's where I feel most like myself instead of trying to follow exactly the same style as someone else, it just doesn't feel right, I'll pick up on stuff and learn the exercises for sure but from a routine stand point, it just feels wrong to me to "follow along." 

The transitioning aspect as you get better, creates more than just stretching the body, you're also stretching your brain to send the nerves into overdrive and be quick on your feet and breathing naturally. When animals stretch like a wildcat or a wolf, they naturally program their bodies to be ready for what lies ahead whether it's on a hunt, a battle for leadership or even when mating occurs. That's what Animal Style Stretching is like, to be able to wake up the body for what the day brings. You never know if you'll be able to help someone in need, to stay healthy to prevent injuries and having the body alert for taking care of loved ones. 

Flexibility is a key to staying young and some of the best stretches in the world come from the inspiration of the Animal Kingdom. Be flexible/limber, be aware and be amazingly awesome. 

Micro Animal Workouts

It's never easy getting the time in when it comes to training, that's where short workouts can come in handy as opposed to getting something in for 45 min to an hour or more in one shot. In most cases, just a few minutes will kick your ass, hell if you do it right, 30 seconds to a minute can feel like an eternity. They're intense, hard and yet so freakishly simple many overlook it.

That's one of the things about Animal Workouts that I love. Just doing a few rounds of something can wipe you out just like that. Last night, I did a workout where I took 4 animal movements and did 5 yards each straight through for a total of 20 yards for one set or round. Did a total of 10 of these with breaks in between every 2-3 sets or so because they're intense and will make you breathe hard quick. All together did 200 yards worth of training and I was dead. For most, just half of that would be more than enough but I wanted to see how far I can take it. 

Animals are some of the most challenging exercises anybody can do, sure some are fairly easy and not too difficult but others (as you progress) will work body in ways traditional movements or what have you won't even begin to touch. Like I said before, I'd rather work my ass off doing animals than most stationary exercises. The key to remember however is simplicity. Progressing to higher forms of movements is awesome but if you don't have the basics down, you won't understand the challenges that do lie ahead. You can still take the basic movements and just progress to greater speeds (as long as you stay balanced).

On Sunday, before heading out to watch The Raiders, I did a "quick" workout where I show three rounds of doing Bear Crawls & Crab Walks. Believe it or not, these three were the last three of actually 6-7 rounds because my angles were off and kept getting out of focus with my phone cam. That workout kicked my ass big time and it was just two exercises going one way with one and back with the other. Still fun though and is one of those workouts that can build up an appetite. 

The objective of good training is to make it effective as much as possible and to make it intense while also progressing safely without hurting yourself. Some people have used animal movements as warm ups which is awesome, but as a workout in and of themselves, is a whole other ball game. One of my favorite scenes from the movie Vision Quest is where the wrestling team is warming up doing basically the seal walk like it's a cake walk before getting into pinning drills. The seal walk is basically walking on your hands while keeping the legs nearly limp and no movement from them so in other words basically dragging the legs while intently tightening them in isometric fashion. 

Next time if you got a couple minutes, mark off a few yards and do a bear crawl one way and the crab going back. See how many rounds you can go straight before needing a breather. It's very simple but effective and this workout hits practically everything in the upper body but also will make your legs feel like jello. Just this workout alone can get you in rugged shape and will fire up your lungs faster than the first 30 seconds of a Ric Flair Vs. Ricky Steamboat match. Be strong, go hard and be amazingly awesome.

The Benefits Of Animal Movement Strength Training

Fitness methods come and go and we never know what the next trend will come next. For some, a method is not a trend or something just discovered, it's a lifestyle or better yet, a style they take beyond the norm because it's part of their life and they want to master it. That's what Animal Style Training is like for me, I always go back to it no matter what I try and the path takes me back to a place where I can be my true self from a fitness stand point. There's always something to try and take on with the challenge and the ideals but moving like a beast in the wild just feels different than anything else.

Practicing it for so long, it always fascinates me on its origins and why it has stood the test of time. If you do enough research, you'll find that Animal Movement Training has its roots in Martial Arts & Wrestling. On the eastern side of the world, the mighty Shaolin Monks use animals as a testament to their success in Kung Fu and other arts by mimicking animals in their unique form. In the west, animal moves are a traditional conditioning method in Wrestling. Anybody who's been on the mat can still feel in their memory the pain and lactic acid build up from crawling like a bear or going backwards like a crab, walking like a duck or moving like a seal. 

In recent decades, Animal Moves are used more as a warmup in MMA schools and football teams use this method for conditioning. The Bear Crawl is the most common animal used because it's so damn simple yet can turn a weak kid into a rugged machine within less than a few months if not weeks. As good as that sounds, the benefits alone are far beyond just warmups and conditioning style exercises. The warmup version is just a beginning to what really comes into play. 

Believe it or not, moving like an animal in the wild takes on shapes and forms beyond what we could normally understand or what we've been taught. It's more of an untapped resource more than we realize and when you start to get into it, there's a boost of strength, agility and challenging aspects you may have never experienced before. Here are some benefits to help you understand this:

1. The Expansion Of Your Performance & Function

Our bodies are far more capable of doing amazing things than other traditional or conventional methods call upon. When we focus on something one dimensionally, the body will reflect on this and we wouldn't be using our full potential in the aspects of sports or in life in general. Nothing wrong with using other forms of exercises, matter of fact, some are pretty damn essential to do but yet, the demand for more versatile movements needs to be utilized. Practicing Animal Style Movements can do phenomenal things for our functionality and perform at a greater level. We are challenging the norm by moving in ways that are more in the 3D variety more than just focusing from a single point in training.

2. Quality Of The Movements & Mobility Training

As we practice moving like a wild beast, we form patterns that are in 3D which has a high potential of developing great mobility and joint lubrication. The muscles can be shortened or elongated but also with many cases, the activity in these positions build an incredible reservoir in the range of motion of the joints. Learning the aspects of the Lizard Crawl for example shows how the Core is in constant motion of twisting and rotating throughout the movement. This in turn will train the spine very well. The hips are getting mobilized and the shoulders are getting worked as well because of the support they provide while also rotating as you take each step. This exercise alone is a full body movement that develops incredible strength and movement quality in the body.

3. Restoration & Rejuvenation Of The Body

Our bodies and our brains were developed with similar movements to the animals. Think about it, as a baby, we learned to crawl, progressed to walking and than to sprint like there's no tomorrow. As we age, it becomes more and more important to maintain our quality of life by moving and keeping our strength, mobility and efficiency for as long as we can. For a lot of us, Animal style training can be seen as a fountain of youth that will revitalize the body. Animal moves also has great potential to target injury prevention and possibly getting rid of aches and pains. This method makes you feel like a kid again. 

These are just a small portion of the benefits you'll find when you practice Animal Movements. Be strong, get wild and be amazingly awesome.    

Could Movement Training Put On Some Serious Muscle?

Movement Training building Muscle? Is that even possible? For the most part, the human body couldn't even give more of a shit where the resistance comes from whether it's utilizing your own body or lifting weights. When given a good amount of time with the amount of resistance (in other words TUT), the muscles can create growth.

Believe it or not, you'd be shocked how amazing movement training puts on muscle, it's just a different version of it than typical weight training. This particular method emphasizes certain areas more than weight training. Let's give this a rundown: When we move the body in this manner, it's a more holistic approach as you form patterns, combos and mix and match using the body as a single unit. You're not isolating the muscles even though you could focus on certain areas as you move. 

Moving like a beast in the wild is a beautiful and even more phenomenal way to develop many parts of the body. Is it perfect? Hell no, nothing is but that's where you can supplement to really focus on the areas you do want even though Animal Moves are quite unbeatable. Here's one idea to look at it, walking like a cold-blooded Lizard...it'll hit your triceps hard and really tackle the shoulders, chest, hips and core like crazy. Another would be a variation of the Bear; going after the shoulders and core with an emphasis on the posterior chain while developing strength and flexibility in the hip flexors. When it comes to the wrists, Animal Moves are some of the best you can do. 

Leg Training wise, I found nothing more fun and exciting to do than moving like an animal. Don't get me wrong; Hindu Squats, Step Ups, Lunges, Bulgarian Squats and others work like a charm and can be kick ass supplemental exercises especially step ups (look up Bob Backlund and you'll know what I mean) but if there was anything close to putting a method on a pedestal, animal moves would be right up there with the best leg training you can do IMO. If you really want to tackle the legs in other ways, check out Warrior 20XX for more info on conditioning that area. 

From Hops to Duck Walks will work you legs far more dynamically and make you more Athletic than other traditional methods. Nothing wrong with working deadlifts and squats and have made many champions and athletes successful but they're still not the GOATs for hitting the lower body. In reality, the exercises in and of themselves could only work with the individual that gives them the best benefit. 

When it comes to Core Training, Movement Training is as close to perfect for that specific area. It's not just strengthening the abs or specifically targeting the front but everywhere around that area. In most cases, Gymnasts & Fighters have some of the most developed Core Muscles that actually makes them functional and athletic as hell. Because of the movements they use, that's where they mostly get those awesome abs that can make them soar through the air or take a punch. 

On Back Training; very few understand the concept that the back muscles work harder than you may realize when it comes to Animal Moves when you're crawling on the floor. That's because our back muscles need to work hard in order to stabilize the scapula or the shoulder girdle. With Animal type movement, the scapula is worked through 3D motions which in turn can develop the muscles in the back. Now there's still some pulling movements you can utilize especially in Suspension Calisthenics to really add on that development. If you look throughout ancient practices such as Yoga or Qi Gong, what is one thing that never comes up? Pulling Exercises yet some of these people have developed incredibly healthy bodies and balanced musculature. Even Ballet Dancers have some awesome back development and most don't do almost any floor work or weights. The arm movements when done with proper control develop the rear delts and backs by themselves.

Although there's more to Movement Training than meets the eye, you can develop a whole plethora of muscle through other means like I said before with Suspension Calisthenics or through Warrior 20XX or even Athlete 20XX. Isometrics work amazing too especially if you're new to certain aspects of training and strengthen the muscles, tendons and ligaments for the movements later on. Be strong, get wild and be amazingly awesome. 

Movement Flow & Stretching

Yesterday, I wrote about using movement or sequences of primal type movements as a creative outlet to get in some good workouts but what about stretching? How do you "warm up" for that particular method? You can always utilize certain aspects of joint loosening and stretches like we typically do or take it from aspects like qi gong, gymnastics or from Ginastica Natural. Flexibility and Elasticity is part of the flows used in movement style training. 

Some of the animal movements I do can be used as both stretching and strength training; take for example an Alligator Walk or Hold: Arms wide in a pushup style position and legs as wide as you can and start to walk. This opens up the hips, the shoulders, the chest and the groin muscles. You don't have to go so wide you turn into a contortionist but enough to feel the muscles as you move through the motion. You can also use it as an Isometric where you stop at a certain point in the movement and press the feet and arms into the ground as hard as you can for a few seconds. This can strengthen the joints and help control your body in an awkward position. 

That's just an idea but Eero at Vahva Fitness tackles anything that can be useful when it comes to conditioning, flexibility and flow work to help harness that creativity. From Martial Arts to Gymnastics to Animal Work, Weights, Bodyweight and Flexibility Training, he goes after it all and he's one lean son of a bitch and can back up some pretty cool stuff. Flexibility is a key to all that awesome stuff and being able to work out the kinks is a great way to get you into the things that will challenge your body in ways you didn't think were possible.

The flows in what I call Playful Movement can also be used as stretching routines. You slow them way down to the point where it's not about speed or jumping from one move to the other but practicing changing the moves into a stretch like the Scorpion, Over Reach in a Crab position, some of the crawls like a Tiger or Bear. They can be used to focus on opening channels in the spine, core, hamstrings, shoulders and hips. This is the beauty of this style of training, you can break them down anyway you want and progress at your own pace. Once you feel stretched out, start doing the flows in regular fashion or practice certain exercises so they're smooth in order to transition into the flows. 

Training is meant to be adventurous and getting into the habit of unleashing that primal and creative side within all of us. Get the blood pumping and get wild. Here's a recent video of some of the things you may see in Movement 20XX. For the explosive movements, you can just hold and focus on the areas in the legs to stretch them out instead of jumping. Be Free, go crazy and be amazingly awesome.  

Turning Imagination Into Reality

Throughout history, creativity has been a cornerstone for what has become civilization and the people that have made things happen, from the pyramids to Mickey Mouse, creativity and vision became a reality. As humans we have built monolithic structures, ruled and conquered civilizations, made sportsmen warriors, became heroes in battle and we used our minds and our imagination to create theme parks that started with a cartoon character. 

Throughout all of this, we have also tackled areas of physical fitness that have stood the test of time. From weightlifting to yoga, bodyweight conditioning, sports training and bodybuilding. All of these have turned men and women into athletic specimens. Now granted some areas of fitness have been lost or have changed gears due to decades of practice, trial and error and the formation of scientific inquiries and studies, we still use creativity to utilize what has been done and make it greater or more interesting.

Primal Training isn't a new concept, it's been around a while but in recent years, we have taken movements based on Animals & Gymnastics to create formulas of incredible athleticism and conditioning programming. From MMA Fighters to everyday Joe's, doing Primal Movements is a powerful idea that shows amazing creativity. The Flow, the Sequences, the coordination and the strength & agility is just phenomenal to watch. Once you understand the movements and practice the transitions, you can come up with some crazy athletic moves that are just phenomenal. Sticking to the basics is key, but never underestimate the power of imagination and creating your own style to create your reality.

Some movements are not for everyone especially those who have severe injuries but the majority can do some awesome stuff with the right tools to cater to their individual needs. It's that evolutionary need to move the way we were meant to and conquer our own selves in order to become the best version of our selves. Move like you were a young kid, become Athletic using building blocks that help reduce injuries and develop that Warrior from within to become the best YOU. Training can be fun and exciting the way it should be and learn things about yourself through physical movement that showcases what the human body is capable of. 

Turn your imagination into reality and get creative in your fitness endeavors. Don't ever let yourself get bored and do kick ass workouts that keeps you strong and healthy well into your golden years. Feel the fire in your veins whether you're 25 or 75 and bring something to life that makes you feel like you can do anything. Be strong, move with vim and vigor and be amazingly awesome.