The Other Side Of Training

 Fitness is not only a passion of mine, it's a path I chose through trial and error along with understanding what I had done to get to this point and helping others see things from another perspective. Like with all things that go with the path you choose, you'll suffer some stuff along the way in order to appreciate and even learn what it took to survive them.

I wasn't really into working out per se when I was a teenager, it was just PE and a weight set in my dad's garage that I barely used or even took seriously. I was so bad that I got hurt far more often and just didn't care about safety or recovery. Being 15-16 years old and not knowing any better, it's crazy to think that looking back on it now, I really wished I knew then what I know now. Hell even as a young kid I hated running and my conditioning was so terrible that running a mile felt like torture and dogging it most of the time. One time our PE class did a run and we had to climb up this big hill right next to the field and then keep going along this trail and back. I was already out of it just doing that damn hill and ran pathetically with my classmates but about 100 yards to get back to the hill to go down, I collapsed in front of my PE coach and nearly blacked out. I was so exhausted and just wanted to die. 

Talk about some scary shit man lol. During my first year of weight training in High School, I was a sophomore at the time, we were in the weight room and I was going for the Bench Press. I had put maybe 155-160 on the bar and test out some reps (at least I thought that was it), well I put the wrong set of weights on and accidently put on like 235 or something like that and when I was about to bring the bar down, it shot straight down onto my lower chest and almost broke my ribs. I bruised my ribs pretty bad and had to go to the nurse. Hard to breathe and the only thing I could use was an ice pack. 

When I got out of High School and joined the Gold's Gym right down the road, I wanted to get stronger and lift more weight. No real conditioning to show for and basically learned on my own how to move weights that I read in one book of Ironman that featured some Dinosaur Training and Bodybuilding. I didn't have specific routines even though I tried and taking MetRx supplements. One day, I tried a circuit I saw either in the book or some other book I had, not even halfway in I was feeling overwhelmed and breathing so heavily that it didn't feel right. Went into the bathroom and in the stall I sat and nearly passed out. I was seeing spots and than it just went black for like a minute or 2. 

In gymnastics when I was 23 almost 24 in 2008, we were doing forward and backward rolls one day and I rolled back wrong and put heavy stress on my neck and spinal cord. It felt like a crowbar smacked my neck. I couldn't stand straight for a couple days and it scared me. I did remind myself to be grateful for the bridging training I did because if my neck wasn't strong as it was, it could've been way worse and after those couple days, I felt bruising but nothing severe and focused on little things to recover. 

So what's the point of me telling you guys this? It's definitely not to brag about injuries as some badge of honor, when scary shit happens, there's not a whole lot to be proud of in those situations. People tend to think that when it comes to certain things in fitness, yeah it looks easy and you handle certain things but you're not immune to everything. Injuries and even such physical and mental exhaustion that you black out can happen and if you're not careful, you can end up losing your life. I learned from those experiences to make myself aware that you don't need to push to such limits to make your training worthwhile. Become strong and conditioned with little to no injury sustaining issues. 

The other side of training is what many won't talk about and have this taboo idea that looking from that other side of the coin is bad and should be left alone. That is dangerous as hell and sure some will go to lengths to see what they're capable of but there's a price to pay. Nobody is like Duncan McCleod of the clan McCleod and can live forever. Make the most of what you're capable of and progress little by little. We never know what's coming so train to the best of your abilities and make the best life you can.  

Can You Bear It In The Wild For Even A Minute?

It's easy to forget that whether you're starting out or are a seasoned vet, fitness doesn't have to be complicated or so damn time consuming it becomes problematic in your life. First and foremost, we are responsible for what we make of ourselves and getting the most out of our existence and learning new things or adapting helps us grow. Throughout my fitness career, I've learned to create any workout I want no matter how long or short it is anywhere I go. It's a constant practice to find the creativity and develop the habit of doing something daily which at times can be hard because life throws us curveballs.

Lately, one of my things for daily exercise is to do something for one minute. That turned out to be the classic Bear Crawl; for one minute everyday I would do this exercise whether in the morning, after a workout or in the evening. One minute of this exercise is incredible. It has become such a good practice that I have now done it for 24 days straight. That's 24 minutes of just Bear Crawling. 

It doesn't have to be fast, just get on all fours and start walking. This exercise is great for waking the body up, neurons firing and feeling a slight endorphin high at the end. Not to mention it gets the heart rate up pretty quick and targets so many muscles it's not even funny. You don't have to do the Bear Crawl, you can pick other animals to do for a minute or you can do isometrics or a callisthenic exercise for a minute, it's up to you. I prefer animal movements for that one minute because it challenges the body to move differently and just getting up and playing. Calisthenics aren't playful to me, I enjoy them don't get me wrong but the idea of being wild and primal just feels right, it feels ancestral. 

Most think in order to accomplish a good workout, you need to do this for 10 minutes, lift for an hour, do 30 minutes on a treadmill or take some crazy aerobics or spin class around 3-4 times a week. This is more of a set up to fail because not everyone has time on their hands and have important things going on in their lives plus they might have kids, PTA meetings, conferences and jobs that just renders them dry at the end of the day. Instead, look into the idea that if you do some form of exercise for 60 seconds, it's a hell of a lot better than doing zilch. The funny thing about this is, one minute may feel like a cake walk but some exercises for that long may feel like the longest 60 seconds of your life. Once you get past a minute, go for 2 than 3 or spread your training throughout the day. You have more options than you were led to believe.

If you're up for it, start with Bear Crawling for 10 seconds each day for a week, than bump it up to 15, than 30 and keep adding till you get to a minute. You want to do something else, go for it. Hell if you want to bring it up to minute in stages, do 6 sets of 10 seconds and go from there, you can even make a tabata workout out of it (20 seconds on/ 10 seconds off for a max of 4 minutes) if you wish, make it work for you. One minute can change so many things it's mind bottling (channeling my inner Ron Burgundy) but seriously, what have you got to lose? Give it a chance and see where it goes, if you're still on the notion that you have to do something crazy for an hour or more 3 or more times a week than that's what you will end up or not end up doing. 

Go and be Wild with these books on Animal Workouts & Exercises

 Animal Workouts by David Nordmark

Animal Moves By Darryl Edwards

What's More Important? Good Looking Muscles Or Healthy Joints?

 Now this isn't to say you can't have both which can be attainable with the right tools to make it happen but many these days go gung ho for one but not the other and look at it from an external point of view most likely. With all the overwhelming info out there and never truly knowing who to trust when it comes to "Fitness Influencers" these days, how the hell can you make a bold decision to make something worth while without understanding the aspects of it?

There's nothing wrong with having a good physique, it can look like a billion bucks and maybe even land you a role or two in a Superhero flick but did you know they sometimes CGI areas of a person's body in those movies? Anyway, it does take hard work to develop a great body, for some it's easier on others but in the end, putting in the work is where it starts. The problem is especially in the day of Social Media, Magazines and other Digital Formats, they filter and alter various aspects of the human body in pictures to the degree where it looks practically unrealistic to even achieve. Along with many who photoshop and/or take steroids, diet pills and often very unsafe supplements, you're looking at a body that isn't made to be developed by the average person. 

Muscles can do wonders, but they won't always be able to save your ass. Some guys and even women develop a condition that's called Bigorexia which is to develop so much muscle that it looks as if it popped out of a comic book. They take steroids, TRT, Muscle Supplements and eat so much that it consumes and overwhelms the organs. That can kill you quicker than the amount of time tickets are sold for Wrestlemania. Along with that, many Influencers show off bodies that look great but have some very dark undertones in order to obtain it and to even try to maintain it, they brainwash people into believing it can be achieved through all these gadgets and $500 resistance bands or these workouts that would put the average person in the ER. It's ridiculous. 

Now, what about developing healthy joints, tendons & ligaments? They're internal and they don't show anything that is worth more than a pluck Nickle at times but they do far more than meets the eye. For people who have healthy and conditioned joints, many don't look like Bodybuilders or Crossfitters, they look almost "normal" or average but they've got more going on than you might think. The power behind those healthy joints is incredible when it is used in various ways. Did you know that some people over the age of 60 have a much healthier body than the 30 year old influencer that gets injured more than Wiley Coyote? That's because despite the appearance, the joints carry far more into a person's years from a long term point of view than those who only use fitness for a short period of time and lose themselves by the time they're 40. Imagine still feeling you're in in your prime than only having it for a few years and than it just poof disappears. 

I'm not saying all influencers and fitness stars can't do things into their golden years but many can't grasp the damage they can cause when they influence people to believe what they do is the greatest thing since sliced bread and that if you did this or that you can be just like them. It's that snake oil salesman mentality and can have dangerous consequences. As we get older, things do change and it can be very challenging to keep a level head on how to maintain a level of fitness and health especially when it comes to the organs and joints. If you can maintain a good physique, that's awesome and I'm happy you pulled it off, but also keep your eye on maintaining healthy joints because nobody wants to say "I've fallen and can't get up" by the time they're 50 and beyond. Be vigilant on taking care of your body both internally and externally. 

Overcoming Isometrics

Encyclopedia Of Bodyweight Training 

Lost Empire Herbs 

Jack And Jill Went Up The Hill To....

 Remember that old Rhyme? Well. times have changed and those two have been climbing that hill too long to fetch some aqua from that damn well. I bet they got in pretty decent shape from climbing that thing everyday but what if they decided to sprint up that hill? They'd be totally different in terms of physique wouldn't they? 

Sprint Training is a timeless and true art form of burning off fat faster than any other method period. Hill Sprints are the king of beasts when it comes to fat loss and quick muscle building. Run up one for 10-12 seconds, slowly walk down to the starting point and repeat, you'll be getting a hell of a workout. There's even research that says Hill Sprints are better than running on flat ground; I wonder why? Well, for one you won't be able to run at the speed you normally do on flat ground and two, you're looking at better joint application. You're also fighting more on a hill because the incline is resisting you; this in turn gives off better chances of developing the muscles.

Acceleration is different too so even at the starting point, you're only accelerating at the speed that a hill will give you. There's no doubt that even at top speed, you won't stay there for more than a few seconds and to even maintain it takes up more force than if you were to do it on flat ground. Some of the best athletes were Hill Sprinters and their conditioning was in the elite of the elite. Did you know that when Walter Payton ran those hills during the off-season, some athletes would join him and these guys weren't too bad either but even then, they had trouble keeping up with Sweetness and would quit before he even had a chance to feel fatigued. He even once said he would run hills trying to kill himself. Now for most people, you don't need to go to extreme lengths to get the most out of Hill Sprints.

How many should you do? That depends on where you're at. If you're just starting out and you can't even sprint yet? Be like Jack & Jill; climb the hill a couple times twice a week at best and increase the number of climbs by one every few weeks or so. When you feel ready, start jogging up and see how it feels, 2-3 times a week. When you're ready to start sprinting, start with 4 at first and you don't need to go further than a 10 second burst. 2-3 times a week do 4 sprints time for a little while, than bump up to 5 and so on. You don't need to do more than 10 sprints per workout and you don't need to sprint any further than 15 seconds worth. A sprint should be your top speed otherwise you're basically jogging up the hill. Even jogging up can get you in good shape but a sprint will separate the men from the boys. 

Start as Jack Jill going up to fetch a pale of water and work your way up to a mountain lion catching prey. Be prepared to see major changes in your body from Sprint Training. It'll be like looking at a totally different person.  

Unleash The Power Of Your Core

 Core Training these days is being thrown around like it has to mean something; for example, the six pack abs look or working towards training for a sport or god forbid Crossfit. Real Core Training is more than just some explosive exercise or working your ab muscles so hard into the ground that if you're not sore you didn't do it right, it's more about strengthening both internally and externally. It has more to do with training the body to prevent injuries as much as possible. Many exercises taught today are merely just muscle building and have no regard for being safe and realistic. 

From a realistic point of view, real life situations aren't going to call for how many sit-ups you can do or how many times you can toss a ball against a wall or even how long you can hold a plank. Things creep up on you and it's important to be prepared. If you have to move your body in awkward situations and your core muscles aren't in shape for them, you're not going to last long. Conditioning is more than just how long you can go, it's about going while staying strong in the process. 

Conditioning the mid section goes a long way than to just put on some muscle. Core Strength helps you move things in awkward positions without hurting yourself, it gives you power to take a hit and it even helps with flexibility and mobility. The Core is not just ab muscles; it's the obliques, the lower back, the pelvic area and others. My favorite forms of training the core is using the Ab Wheel or the Power Wheel to really tackle those areas in a short amount of time. Sit-ups don't really do it for me anymore and plus, they're boring as hell in my eyes. Isometrics while focusing on the Core is a hell of a lot better than sit-ups, you can do sit-ups until the cows come home and not truly get anywhere. Farmer's Walk or shouldering & walking with weight is a hell of a Core Builder because you need to be in control otherwise you're flopping all over the place. Animal movements force you to work the Core in order to stabilize you in those weird positions. 

Having million dollar abs may look awesome but if you turn slightly or can't move in the most basic format, you just wasted all that time and now you're hurt. There's a difference between being sore and being in agonizing pain; I've had both. When I do focus on Core Conditioning, I have a greater chance of being strong when the unexpected comes. That's the reality at times and it's important we make training the core a priority. I don't give a damn about a magazine cover or what people think what's better for your abs, I train to make myself as strong as possible so I don't get hurt very often and be able to do things that are fun to do. 

The idea is to train the body as a unit, not working a bunch of isolated muscles. When you work your Core, work it to the degree where multiple muscle groups work together to get the best out of it. Exercises from the Power Wheel give you real Core Strength & Conditioning in such a short amount of time it's not even funny. Get strong and remember, you have the power in you to unleash levels of strength you didn't know existed. 

One Flu Over The Cuckoo's Nest

Being sick sucks and that's a damn fact man. Over this past week, me and the wife ended up a little under the weather and tried to take it easy as much as possible. I did end up getting my wife's cold which could've been worse but I'm recovering pretty quickly since it's been less than a few days. She's healing up to the best of her abilities and she seems to be practically over it since she was being cute and a little mischievous yesterday.  Think this is the first time I've been sick for a little over a year or more but who's counting?

When it comes to illness or getting over something, I try to make it as natural as possible to heal up: Intermittent Fasting, Hydrate, Take Some Vitamins, Training And Rest. Training might sound a little odd and maybe even cuckoo you might say but it does have some benefit to be a little active to get some of the crap out of your system. I don't mean to go running sprints or going to the gym and moving some plates around but something light and about maybe no more than 40% of what you normally do but that also depends on the condition you're in, everybody is different. I like to work on some joint loosening, deep breathing as much as possible and do Isometrics with less intensity. 

Being sick is never fun and some get sick easier than others which is why we need to strengthen our immune system more often than just our muscles and the connective tissues. We can't completely prevent ourselves from getting sick but we sure as hell can find ways to heal/recover at a quicker rate with the right tools and info that gives as many individuals an advantage as much a possible. It's a known fact with me that I don't trust the medical industry all that much and go to a route that has alternatives than to just take a pill or pop something in order to feel better temporarily. That doesn't mean the medical industry is all terrible, yes it has flaws but it also has many success rates for many things. To me, it's important to stay healthy as much as I can, unless I'm in severe dire straits or need to see a specialist (which is already rare).

Take care of yourself the best way you can and let your body heal when it needs to. Even superheroes get sick sometimes so do what works best for you. I can give you ideas on certain supplements you can take but overall; rest up, hydrate when needed and give your body time to recover (it may not be that easy for many but do your best).

Elderberry

Immunity Page At Lost Empire

Mushroom Alchemy Tincture

Meditation Jedi Style

"The force is what gives the jedi his powers, it's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds, penetrates us and binds the galaxy together."- Obiwan Kenobi.

Ever since I was little, Star Wars has been one of my all time favorites but when I got older and getting into the ideas behind the "force" and all that, I started to understand the true purpose of it and what it means to have that spiritual feeling. Now I'm not into religion or anything like that for reasons I really don't think people care enough to hear or read but I do like the idea of certain meditation practices, breathing techniques, visualization and thinking differently. Meditation has many meanings but the true and sole purpose of it is to have the ability to be empty in the mind and form a connection between yourself and the universe in the present moment.

Some people think in order to meditate, you have to sit or stand in a specific position, make your hands a circle and just empty everything in your brain; that's not as easy to do nor is it the only way. Some form of meditation is by moving or doing things that just have your mind go completely blank and all you're doing is just being. Lifting weights can be meditative, moving like a wild animal can be meditative (just look at guys like Rickson Gracie) or whatever. It's the ability to be in such control of your body and mind that it becomes one with everything around you. I'm not very good at sitting when I meditate, I mainly lay down in a comfortable position and just focus on my breath. Lately, I've been listening to Ambient Sounds and videos with amazing visuals of nature and even Jedi videos.

I would sometimes listen to this meditation I found on youtube that sounds like a Star Wars soundtrack with music and sounds of nature mixed together that is just awesome to listen to and just breathe into. It's about an hour long, other videos have 10-30 minute skits of the same or similar music. I downloaded it into an MP3 on my phone and now I just listen to the sounds. I've also downloaded into an MP3 a Jedi Meditation Guide where a guy talks you through the process and uses quotes and references from Star Wars, it's about 10 minutes long and although he sounds like a robot at times or his broken english is painfully obvious, I just listen to what he says, breathe and just let everything sink in. Done it a couple times now and each time, I feel great, relaxed and more present.

There are books out there that uses various practices like Daoism, Buddhism and others in the words of Star Wars that is actually really cool. Some are catchy and/or tacky a bit but they also share great messages. Some of the references you might need to have some knowledge of the franchise in order to understand but the messages are pretty direct and make good points on meditation, how to be a good person, what to look for when it comes to "energy vampires" or applying certain Jedi Practices in the real world. No, you don't learn to make objects float in the air or use the jedi mind trick to manipulate someone or even shoot lightning out of your fingers like Count Dooku or Emperor Palpatine; but you do learn how to be mindful, practice doing good deeds whenever possible, relax the mind the body often and making good choices. 

Meditate like a Jedi or in some cases like the Gray Jedi (A jedi who finds balance in both the light and dark side but doesn't succumb to the evils the dark side creates). 

The Jedi Mind

The Dharma Of Star Wars

The Jedi Path

Be More Yoda

The Way And The Power Of The Force

Active While Rehabbing Little Injuries

 It can be easy to want to take a day off of training; especially if you're really sore or have minor injuries. It can also be easy to just drop things and just "take it easy" for a day or two. I look at it as, if I took it easy or even too easy, something won't feel right. I've had my fair share of minor things and broke through skin or worked a little too hard but I have always believed that being active helps with recovery.

A couple days ago, I pushed a little too hard doing a deck of cards workout and ended up pulling muscles around the right side of my lower back and hip areas. Luckily it wasn't severe enough to not even get off the floor or just being in pure agony on a scale of 11 out of 10 but I did feel it and knew something wasn't right. I just went with my instincts and rehabbing those areas for now doing little things. It's not the same as taking it easy and doing nothing, I'm not programmed that way. So far, just doing things like 1 minute bear crawls, isometrics and joint loosening have been a huge help. 

Sometime before that, I did a live video on Tik Tok doing a workout that I made up and only did it the one time. The whole workout took about 30 minutes including rest periods. Here's what I did......

-10 Round Superset Of 

10 Strikes Of The 25 lb Sledgehammer

1 Thor Catches Loki W/ 73 lb Hammer (Walking the hands up and down with a heavy sledgehammer)

-5 sets of 10 each arm of High Pulls W/ 70 lb Kettlebell

-Finisher was swinging the 15 lb Indian Clubs as many times as possible

It was a pretty hard workout and really got my cardio up along with strength training, plus I was doing it in less than freezing weather. I got some bad discomfort in my low back the next day and had to rehab for a few days which consisted of mainly joint loosening, some bridging and animal moves at a slower pace. Things happen and you have to expect the unexpected at times. Some people just shrug it off and think nothing of it but others might have some discomfort or a little minor injury that will heal quick and treat it as so dramatically epic you'd think they should win an Oscar for how they performed the feeling.

We never know what will creep up on us and we sometimes get so enthralled on how to treat an injury that we don't know if it'll lead to something very severe later or it'll just be gone in a flash. The important thing is to avoid injuries as much as possible but not be so damn cautious that it causes fear. Now if you have severe injuries and there's no way around them, that's a whole other story. Train with the intention that you are conditioning the body to be resilient but also be mindful of taking care of yourself if something were to happen.

As we get older, being resilient is far more important than looking like a million bucks. With the right tools and nutrition, you can look like a fitness model at 40 or 50 but if you get hurt too frequently and your body tends to get injured quicker, looking good is not going to save your ass. Train to be resilient and strengthen the body to the degree where breaking down is less likely to happen. Train with intent but be safe in the process as well.

The Indestructible Body By Logan Christopher 

Overcoming Isometrics By Matt Schifferle

The Wildest Workout In The Wilderness

 It's awesome to want to challenge yourself outside of what you normally can do. It's an opportunity to learn what you're capable of and making the most of what is possible yet also rewarding. Every now and then (sometimes more often) when I really have some energy to use up in my workouts, I take my animal dice game workout and double the amount of reps/steps per animal. This really hits your conditioning hard and it doesn't take long before you feel like you want to die. 

Although I like using reps/steps, you can make it however you want; yards, meters, feet or even inches for that matter. Use your imagination and see what makes this workout so fun to do. I always feel great after a workout like this. The longest I have gone with this was about 45 minutes with little to no breaks but there are workouts that make 10 minutes feel like an eternity. Imagine doing up to 40 reps on some moves and up to 80 on others, that's nuts man. Here's how it goes: You roll once for an animal and than another for the amount of steps or distance you have to do. Say you land on Bear Crawls and you roll a 17 (The dice goes up to 20), that means you have to take 34 steps of the Bear Crawl. 

I've had these animals memorized on that dice for many years now but I never do the same workout twice which is the beauty of this, you never know what will come up and that helps you to expect the unexpected and be prepared for anything. Nature can be pretty to look at and be in awe of, but it's also unpredictable and can creep on you at any moment; that's where workouts like this can really tackle your senses, your awareness, your strengths, your weaknesses and the ability to be on alert at all times because in the jungle, you have to know how to survive.

It's a hell of a ride and puts your conditioning to the test. Just a few minutes of this will take out anyone and you'll be huffing and puffing within less than 5 rounds. When you start to breathe really heavily, take a walk around to catch your breath. Some rounds get me winded fast and I need to take at least a couple minutes to catch my breath, other times it takes more than a few to get me winded and I'll just keep going. When I need a breather, I walk and practice my deep breathing until everything subsides and go again. For the longest time, once I felt done, I left it but now when I've had enough, I want to finish it off with Bear Crawls to really feel done. Since I've done that, I've had greater satisfaction that I kicked my ass in this workout. 

There is no limit to how many rounds you do so do what is possible that day. Some workouts, 10 rounds is all you can do, others you might go up to 20 or 30 so never look at it as "oh I need to do this many rounds to get in shape" or "That felt too short, did I do enough", this workout is so random at times that you never even know if you're doing more upper body or lower body. Let it happen and see what you can do and play around with because that's the point of this crazy workout is to have fun. 

For books/kindle on animal exercises check these out.....

Animal Workouts

Animal Moves: How To Move Like An Animal To Get You Leaner, Fitter, Stronger And Healthier For Life

Hyperactivity And Animal Movements

Many kids can be very hyperactive and some have ADHD  and need some sort of stimulant or activity to get that excess energy out. I've seen many little ones over the years just run around with so much fire and imagination it's almost unbelievable how some adults can keep up. Now when I say stimulant, I'm not saying put them on Ritalin or some kind of drug to keep them focused, I don't believe in drugs and I was on Ritalin during the first decade of my life.

Hyperactivity is due to the abnormal or extreme case of moving that can be restless and overstimulation of the brain that causes the nerves to keep moving the body. We were meant to move and when you have a case of a child or even in an adult where focus can be difficult for certain tasks either during school or at a job, movement is better than a drug but also we have been told in school, sitting still is a requirement and we have to pay attention to the task at hand at all times. Sitting still isn't just difficult for some, it can be downright murderous to the mind and when you're hyperactive, trying to suppress the nerves is just nuts. 

I loved playing outside when I was a kid, playing ball, tag, building stuff and even rough housing a little but that gave me the stimulation my body needed cause when you're full of energy and don't know how to bring it down and have those endorphins kick in, it can cause someone to have insomnia or restless leg syndrome. When it comes to putting kids on drugs like Adderall or Ritalin or things of that nature, yes it can help someone stay focused and form an ability to control the nerves in your body but it also can have an effect on the nervous system to shut down and possibly cause depression and not have the ability to use the energy needed that brings in those "happy" hormones and you're left with this near "zombie" like state where you're too focused and undermining the energy a kid needs or even an adult for that matter.

If you ever get a chance, watch the films Bigger, Faster, Stronger & Prescription Thugs to understand the drugs that people use to get ahead in their endeavors that include Adderall that kids in high school trade off on. I've believed for nearly 17 years that movement and exercise is one of the best medicines if not right at the top of the list for best medicines to help with depression, insomnia, hyperactivity, motor skills and strengthening the nervous system. It's a natural form of therapy. I know some people have stronger and much different circumstances than others and it's not always in Black & White but to me, going straight to drugs especially in little kids is just a giveaway of saying "you're destined to be addicted." 

I have played around with mimicking animals when I was little but when I got older and discovered systems based on moving like a wild animal, it became clear at least in my experience that this type of training helps a lot more than what the drug pushers give credit for. In my experience, it's an amazing relaxer and gives off endorphins naturally. It teaches you how to handle the body in awkward positions, it stimulates the brain to help control the nerves and muscles needed to move without falling on your face and pulverizes that excess energy to help you focus better and feel good as you continue on your day. It's my go to therapy to help me sleep since I've been known to be a night owl. A few rounds of my animal dice game, some deep breathing and within minutes I'm practically out like a light. 

I'm one of those people who hates drugs or even over the counter stuff (unless it's a supplement I'm interested in) so much that I won't even take cough drops or pain pills. I hated it when I was forced to take things when I was little and when I was in the hospital for my injuries, I felt guilty taking the stuff in the IV. When I had those muscle issues after the car accident last year, the only thing I took for them was Tylenol and after a few days, I tossed them because I felt like I was relying on them too much. I worked on joint loosening & flexibility training and that did more for me than the Tylenol ever did and I felt good about myself. 

Animal Movement or even regular exercise can be a great form of therapy for hyperactivity and it provides stimulation needed to help focus on the things you can do. If I was able to train this way when I was a kid, who knows where my focus could've gone. It doesn't take very long and has benefits that both kids and adults can appreciate. Get stronger both mentally and physically as naturally as possible. Be safe and be aware. 

Had Enough Yet?

 Sometimes we ask ourselves "Am I doing enough in my workouts?", "Am I getting enough reps in?" or "Will this be enough to make me stronger?" The truth is, we all don't always feel satisfied when we train. It can be a constant battle of being able to do enough. Some just push on and not realizing that not only have they done enough, they go too far beyond it and end up hurting themselves. There are those as well that just don't know any better and are so brain dead that they don't even understand why they're killing themselves in the name of exercise.

We are more capable than we believe to be and some of us are still learning this and figuring out what makes us stronger and doing amazingly awesome things. Now, we also come to a point in time where we just tell ourselves "Ok, this is enough for now" and we move on or do a little better the next time around. Feeling satisfied for some means they've done it, they've made it through and they're happy with it. For others, being unsatisfied means they're unhappy and feel like a failure or they may have done all they could but it just didn't feel right. It happens sometimes, more often than we care to admit.

When I started out with the Hindu Push-ups, Hindu Squats and the Bridge, I just wanted to see what I was capable of and just being able to rep out the best I could. I became frustrated when I was trying to satisfy the standards that the people demonstrating them saying you have to do this many push-ups, that many squats and hold this much time in the bridge. When I stopped trying to hold other people's standards on a pedestal, I felt free, in control to see what my standards were because my standards are what matters. Because of this, in various workouts, I've done more than 200 Hindu Push-ups, 500+ Squats and held a bridge for three minutes without thinking anything about it. Once I felt satisfied with my standards, I moved on.

When you hold your own standards, you're free to challenge yourself to your levels on your terms. When someone else sets standards for you, who're you really holding up to? Sure in some cases, when someone else sets a standard and you accomplish it (or even survive), it can feel great especially if the person who set them is a mentor or someone you highly admire and you believe in what they're trying to help you accomplish but the truest form of satisfactory is when you set your own standards and you make the choice of doing enough. 

This is more on developing your own fitness programs and such and setting goals or standards of training for yourself, this does not mean that if you're training for law enforcement, military, firefighter training or hell if you're in the damn CIA, you're training for specific purposes and there are standards and tests that need to be up to a certain qualification otherwise you need to up to the task or you won't make it. If you're training at a gym or at home or wherever, you can set your own goals and it's on you whether you fail or not or feel the satisfaction because you made that choice. 

These days when I train, I sometimes fail at attempting certain things or just had enough because my body or mind just isn't there that day or getting through it and had enough that day. Some days, I feel great just getting a thing in or two, I make the choice of what I want to do and if I fail, it happens, if I feel I've had enough, that's my choice. Because of this, I don't feel as sore, I recover naturally and I strive to be a little better each time. Holding onto someone else's standards that don't meet with yours is a recipe for disaster and you have an opportunity to make your own standards and learn what it takes to make things better for your body and mind. There are plenty of things I can't do that people have set a standard for but there are just as much that they can't do what I have done, that's the true nature of doing enough for you, you can do great things, make it enough for you to grow and feel that you made something satisfactory. 

Going Wild Makes The World Go Round

Some people have a love/hate relationship with their workouts. It's never easy going through a routine and getting the most out of. Sometimes, we just want to let loose and not be able to think. Letting our training become meditative in my eyes is the ultimate goal; sure we can go for time, how many reps or sets and go for quality as best as possible but yet when it becomes more of a meditation than anything, it leads to the big picture.

Animals are incredible to watch and the way they move, the skill sets, the ability to catch prey or escape a predator is just fascinating. From National Geographic to the Planet Earth Series, watching and mimicking wild animals is just so meditative. When I play around with my Animal Dice Game workout, I don't have to think much and can transform into a different animal at any given time. I have done this workout so many times, the order of the exercises is planted into my brain forever. Like the young superhero Beast Boy from the Teen Titans, being able to mimic just about any animal is literally like second nature to me. It's a language, a creative outlet to hone my instincts and my learning to expect the unexpected. 

My favorite times to do an animal workout is either in the morning or at night, when I do it at night, I would do as many rounds as I can until I feel like I've had enough. It gets me out of that jittery state and into a much calmer state of mind. Once the endorphins kick in and my breathing gets down to normal, it makes it easier to fall asleep and letting everything sink in. If I were to do it in the morning, it wakes up my brain and have greater focus and feeling alert. It's a moving meditation. 

Many people in sports or fitness see animal type movements as warm ups before they get into the big workouts. It's great to even warm up with them but to do them as themselves, it becomes a different workout. It channels your natural state to be with nature and using the body in a greater sense of being. In the last few years, people have gotten into things like Animal Flow, Ginastica Natural and Primal type training to learn a sense of blending systems together and mixing ideals like Gymnastics, Capoeira, Yoga and Martial Arts which is awesome and I would at times do those but there's nothing like mimicking wild animals as closely as possible without the flair and "spectacle" of movement training. It's a whole different feel and getting a true sense into the art of animal movements and closely resembling the imitations. 

Without question, wild animals are the kings and queens of bodyweight training and I hope more people take on this kind of training as part of their training regimen because it blends the imagination and develops skills that could be used later in life especially as we age. Not saying at 80 years old you should run 100 yards doing a bear crawl but you can learn how to move and strengthen the brain and strengthen your motor skills along with developing a stronger sense of coordination and focus. It's also fun as hell and it doesn't take up a ton of time. A goal in my lifetime is to be able to play with grandkids in this fashion and stay strong into the golden years. I never want to stop being wild in my training, it just makes life a little better.   

Training Through Grief

We all deal with grief in our own way; sometimes we dive into our work, we distract ourselves by being around others or go somewhere that makes us feel a little brighter, some of us even train to push through the emotional pain. It's still hard to accept that it has been 10 days since the passing of Bud Jeffries and the amount of love and influence he had on people during his life that are now dealing with this tragic loss. I still get little jolts of emotions whenever I write or think of him. 

Since he died, I have written on facebook, some stories about him when he was up here in Idaho from stories just days before my wedding to my most recent one about our trip to a Wolf Sanctuary sometime after we performed a show together. It's also a bit eerie to me that I'm now the same exact age as Bud was when I met him in 2011. His influence on me and others are mostly indescribable even though we try to tell what kind of influence or impact he had on us. 

Through this process, it has been a battle a time or two to get training in or just little workouts. The thing is, no matter how much I was feeling, I know deep down he would've wanted me to keep doing what I love to do and make the most of what's possible and be victorious in the midst of tragedy. That's what he wanted for all of us who train or perform feats or whatever in our lives to do because he would've done the same thing. The power he had and the energy he put on us can never truly be matched in the sense that when you trained either with him or through his videos and books, that energy made you feel stronger, almost invincible and you had abilities you didn't think were possible. That's the kind of person he was.

Most of my workouts recently had been short or micro throughout the day, doing little things here and there but one workout really stood out in this time where I wanted to do something that I know I can do but also have it be challenging enough to push through. In one workout, I did 500 Step Ups in under 22 minutes (21:51) which I had never done before or did that many in that amount of time. I used a countdown method and didn't rest the entire time. I wanted to quit a couple times but it felt like Bud's spirit was right beside me and telling me to keep going and that I got this. It wasn't really like a cheering me on type of thing but I sensed that he was just pushing me to be the best I can be and to not quit on what I can finish. 

Other workouts were some carrying & step ups, chest expander training, working with the TNT Cables and now just getting back into my animal workouts. I did some demo videos I posted on Social Media, swinging a sledgehammer like a mace, fingertip push-ups, hindu squats, lifting my 70 lb Kettlebell with three fingers in each arm and even doing push-ups on three fingers of both arms. I guess you can call those micro exercises or workouts and than doing a few other things. Some of these just came to me to do and others were to honor my friend and mentor because it's something I love and that's the biggest moral of this piece is that to do what you love and share it with the world like he did. 

This world is a little darker now that he's gone but in the words of Art Lafleur as the Ghost Of Babe Ruth in the movie The Sandlot, "Heroes can be remembered, but legends never die. Follow your heart kid and you'll never go wrong." Bud was our hero and his legend will live on till the end of time. 

Has Our True Strength Potential Revealed Itself?

 We all have great strength in us and we all have incredible gifts that we don't always know we posses. The true potential in ourselves can be fearful to understand but it also goes without saying that we overcompensate and let ego take over and not give a second thought to what is the real deal and what we want others to see. Strength is more than physical and it never hurts to have a great amount of physical strength but our true potential is where we channel our emotions, mental intentions and physicality into one super power as oppose to separate entities.  

It has been said we can only access very little of our true strength at it's peak. What if we learned to channel our strength that it goes higher than we have always perceived to be. Some people learn visualization techniques, breathing patterns, controlled emotions and what the real intentions are; what if we can learn all those things at the same time, not just little pieces here and there? If anything, we are our own worst critic and when we fear ourselves or overwhelm the ego, it can be dangerous and keep us from reaching our true potential that is just waiting to explode.

This is where the incredible system CoreForce Energy comes into play. The ability to access the body and mind's abilities to strike with such ferocious strength, speed, endurance and flow that it couldn't be comprehended by other means. What if we had abilities to lift a little heavier with more reps, run even 1/10th faster than our top speed, hit harder and with greater precision  in a fight, have greater endurance and gas out an opponent with ease or even go up a flight of stairs like it was almost walking on air? CFE can show you all those things with simple terms just about anyone can understand and have lesser chances of getting injured. 

We all want to know how powerful we really are but there's always something holding us back and it could be anything, more often than not it's ourselves because we don't understand the true nature of who we are inside and out. In the wise words of Yoda "you must unlearn what you have learned", we need to channel our true strengths into understanding the harnessing and the applications to open the door to ourselves. It's about taking what we know and apply it from a different perspective to reveal what is the real deal in how we create the real strength within us.

I know this all sounds like Hocus Pocus bullshit, I thought so too but I felt like I needed to learn this anyway because most of my life has been finding out the truest form of myself. It's still going on but have learned so much from CFE that it's gotten smaller and smaller about finding my true strengths. Because of the techniques I learned and applying them to certain aspects in my day to day life, my mind has not just absorbed what it has learned but also expanded to areas I never thought could go. I may have changed how I train over the years but I never truly stopped expanding my discoveries into CFE and it has helped me in the long run than anything else.

I still feel my physical strength hasn't peaked and things are just getting started. That's where the true power of CFE lies; when you apply the techniques, it reveals your strength in ways you didn't think was possible and potentially expands that strength over and and over as time goes on. The power we have in ourselves is far stronger than we think it is. We have to expand ourselves in order to open those doors to what has been there all along. It's almost as if you can create such strength and power in the blink of an eye it'll blow someone's mind. Does it take practice? Of course it does like anything else but it creates such an atmosphere that it becomes addicting to learn. 

Find out for yourself and see if CoreForce Energy can WORK for you. You have the potential to see results in less than a day as opposed to what someone can see in weeks, months or even years of training. It is THAT awesome. 

Coming To Grips With A Fallen Brother

 

Some say in life you should never meet your heroes because they just might disappoint you. This case is not only the opposite but on a scale many couldn't possibly imagine. Not only did me and quite a number of people meet our hero, he never disappoint, he made life that much more gratifying and beautiful to live in. To say my heart and my soul is now torn is not only an understatement, it also can't be hidden. 

Bud Jeffries has left this earth and not only is it something I never thought I'd say or find out so soon in this lifetime, it just doesn't sound real or believable. This past Friday, I get a message on Instagram from Mike "The Machine" Bruce showing what Bud's Wife wrote to Dennis Rogers that Bud had died and like those times you hear in movies I just screamed "no, no, no" and just lost it. I literally felt my whole being come crashing and being in such shock that my emotions just poured out of me just like when I found out my stepfather died the same exact day 19 years apart. 

He was more than a man among men, the strongman's strongman and an athletic barbarian, he was a rare soul that deserved to be here longer than he should've. A man with such compassion, lust for life and a presence that would make anyone in a room or even a whole building take notice. There was something very few in this crazy world had and that was the will to showcase what it means to be a human being with such genuine love for others that can't be matched by any other means. He was that man and there won't be anyone like him again.

I had known about Bud since about 2005-2006 and maybe spoke to him once or twice for a few years after that but I officially met him at a seminar in San Jose, CA that he hosted with Logan Christopher in April of 2011. The first time I looked over and saw him, it was like seeing a master of different arts walk in and just flood the place with energy that just made you feel powerful inside. I had never known anything like that before or since. I got to know him a little while we took a lunch break one day and sat with him and Noah at a 5 Guys Burger Joint across the way. It was the casual asking of questions and what he's like and all that, wanted him to give me some pointers on some things and during the seminar, I couldn't help but wanting to learn from him and I felt at times I annoyed him but he never showed it and he was humble. 

Over a period of 2 and a half years since that time, I occasionally messaged him and seeing how he was doing and then I found out he was doing a show in Spokane, WA which is less than an hour from here in Idaho and I jumped at the chance to have dinner with him and hang out. He came by and we did some training together and went to a Texas Roadhouse. This is where the ball started rolling and spending real one on one time and learning from one another. This was just before Thanksgiving in 2013 and after he did his time, he came back again and spent two nights at my house. This was February of 2014 and we did three shows together in Coeur D' Alene, Athol & Sandpoint. He did his anti-bullying speeches, feats and other things, I got to perform some Phonebook Tearing and Bent a 60 penny nail in a nose to mat bridge at least once or twice. It was a bonding experience that will never leave me. He took me under his wing and became brothers by that point. 

I learned so much from him and he became more than just a role model, he became a part of my family. He put knowledge and wisdom on me that nobody can ever take away and when I wasn't being true to myself when I would talk to him, he didn't let up on me and told me how much value I had and that I'm an amazing person with such strength inside and out and never ever judged me. Very few in my life ever gave me that and showed such compassion and understanding. He was the hero I was looking for after my stepdad died, it took me 8 years to find him and not only did it happen, it made me feel I truly belonged to something and keep that fire inside me to do what I love and share it. 

Years later, I was engaged and Bud was the first man I wanted to call and ask to officiate my wedding. He not only agreed but also because the theme we were going for, he dressed up literally like Obi-Wan Kenobi. It turned more of a laugh into a thing where I couldn't believe he would do that for us. When he came up here to do the wedding, I was such a wreck and emotions were all over the place, he was calm and collected to keep me on track and helped me with training, giving me ideas to enhance what I wanted to do and kept me distracted in a way that regardless of what was going on with me during those 4 days, I was ready to be married and give everything I had. I couldn't have done it without him and I will be convinced of that for the rest of my life. 

He ended up leaving a day early because his wife Heather had some physical issues back home and Bud couldn't wait any longer to be there for her. That's a real man folks, that's love beyond reasoning. The last time I ever saw him was when I hugged him, thanked him for everything and he drove off. 

Little did I know that would be the very last time I got to spend time with him up close. It's just so damn eerie and unbelievable he's not here in this physical form anymore. I wish he was still here to know that after me and my wife adopt a son, Bud would be in his middle name. I want my son to know who he was and that not only was Bud Superman to me and others around the world, that I would pass on what I learned from him and do everything in my being to be as compassionate, understanding and love even remotely as much as he showed to me and the people in his life.  

The last conversation we ever had was on messenger and we had talked about how he was doing and what he wanted to change to be better not only for himself but for anything else. He would like and put a little note on my videos every now and then which I always appreciated and will miss. The last set of words he ever wrote to me was wishing me and my family Merry Xmas after I wished him the same. I love you my brother, I will miss you everyday and know that you were and still are my guardian angel, the man I needed in my life and that your legacy will live on forever in the hearts of everyone you touched. I'm grateful and honored for everything you taught me and that I have Heather's back always whenever. 

RIP Bud, say hi to Noah for us and we all will share your stories and antics for all.