Powerful Functional Legs

             It is one of the most solid foundations to have strong, agile, functional and powerful legs. If you’re in a sport, your legs are your carryover. You can’t kick a soccer ball, score a touchdown, jump shoot a basketball or run the bases in baseball without the use of your legs. It is important to have the best legs possible, not just in sports but in real life, if you’re in law enforcement you might need to run down a suspect, if you’re a strongman you might need to use your legs for certain feats like bending or maybe pulling a large object like a truck possibly. You see way too many guys in the gym that have flamingo legs meaning large upper body and bird legs. Never fall for this.

            Having a powerful lower body is essential to the many things life offers but power doesn't always mean super strong, it’s crucial to also have flexible and supple joints, tendons and ligaments. I know this all too well because of the recovery from my accident 8 years ago. I started out with squats but as I learned flexibility training it became more important. Stretching is a key to lifelong health so it’s important to find the best ways to keep you from having burned out legs as you get older. Remember to learn to relax as you stretch, the key is to release tension because the more relaxed you are, you can be more explosive and powerful later on.

            We all know the key to superhuman legs is squats but that’s not the only exercise that builds them. Squats are usually the straight up and down exercise but what about directional movements or isometric holds for different directions. When you lift odd objects, your legs aren't always going to go up and down, you need to move in different patterns to lift certain things like Rocks, kegs, logs and furniture. You want to keep strong in every direction possible. Think of it like wrestling; you don’t always shoot in for the kill, you need to shift the body for certain moves or holds that require flexibility otherwise you’re just going to be stiff and you’re down for the count.

            The single most important reason the legs need to be super strong is because they also build crazy lung power which amps up your conditioning. I have repeated it so many times but certain people need to get this planted into their brain, the late Karl Gotch has said “Conditioning is your best hold.” This means the more conditioned you are, the longer you can go and can stay in the game. This goes for everything. Endurance is essential and yes it’s possible to have big legs and still have insane stamina (Great Gama anyone). You don’t always need high volume training to build endurance and certain things won’t build lung power the way you might think. Powerful muscle and endurance go hand in hand. Keep your legs strong, supple and crazy powerful because you never know when they might come in handy when the time calls for them. 

Developing Meditative Power

           

               Exercising doesn't always have to be physical or moving. A lot of people firmly believe if you go hardcore, that’s all you need but in reality the opposite is true. In meditation practices, the most powerful ways to gain inner strength is just by not moving and by relaxing (not loose and lazy) and strengthening the power of your mind and strengthening your organs. Shaolin Monks are one of the prime examples of developing super power in a meditative state. We've all seen how great they are with jumping abilities, breaking bricks and they’re crazy endurance but where do you think all that power comes from? Sure from practicing those things but it’s the power of chi or life force that brings all of those things together.

            A great meditation practice especially if you’re going after a goal or want to be better at something is to think, see, and feel as if you’re in a movie theater, just you watching a movie on the big screen. You’re watching your accomplishments unfold in front of your eyes, your past and future goals come alive and with love and celebration you’re starting to see it as if it was your favorite movie. You’re the hero vanquishing the villains (aka negative and dark energies) that want you to fail but you don’t give in. Each time you watch that movie, it becomes more powerful, clearer, more alive and before you know it, it jumps right out of the screen and that movie becomes your reality. You’re excited, invigorated and far stronger than you ever were before. Something within you becomes something Superhuman and there’s nothing anybody can do about it.

            Powerful meditation usually pits you in an offensive strategy but not so much in a defensive position. Ever heard the expression a great defense is a great offense? That’s like teaching people to swing the bat and hit a homerun but where’s the pitcher, the catcher and the outfield? That batter might be your dark energy and you don’t want him on base or having him soar that ball over the fence. Your team is on the defense and you can’t let the other team score. Sometimes you throw a fastball or a curve ball and they might get on base but they haven’t scored yet. If you learn to feel and know it, you realize you still have the best defensive team on that field, picture having the greatest players at their position on your team like a bunch of all-stars working together. See guys like Satchel Paige as your pitcher, Josh Gibson at Catcher, Lou Gehrig at First, Rogers Hornsby at Second, Cal Ripken Jr. at Shortstop, Brooks Robinson at Third and your Outfielders are second to none with names like Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente and Rickey Henderson. Its one hell of a strategy don’t you think?

            This is just an example and you can name other players of your choice but the principle stays the same and there are other ways to use defensive strategies in meditation. It’s like building a giant bubble over you and no one can get to it, or in this case using Baseball analogy you cover the wall of the field as one massive bubble so there’s no way they can hit it out of the park and your players get an out more than a good number of times, hell you can make the batter strike out cause the moment you throw that ball, it’s so fast he can’t see it and it’s right in the catcher’s glove before he knows what hit him. Make it work for you.

            The physical side to meditation is a useful tool more than you think. In Qi Gong; you learn to harness your energy through movements that flow with energy and smooth harmony. Tai Chi is the same thing just in a different format of energy flow but yet it’s still there and the more you harness that energy, the more powerful you become. Another look at physical meditation is through the use of CoreForce Energy; the ability to harness strength and speed using sound, torquing points and cutting edge power with the mind and body working together. It is used in any situation whether it’s through exercise, talking, writing, playing an instrument or whatever it is you want to do, it’s harnessing that inner power that generates strength in all its aspects.

            There are more ways to develop meditative powers so learn and find what works best for you, make it a habit to meditate the best way possible and be less resistant as possible. This world does have it’s beautiful side but it’s up to us how we see things and how we can our lives richer in health and well being. See what you can find, it’s a great way to make life that much sweeter.

Isometric Conditioning

            

              I seriously believe and quite a few others believe this to is that Isometrics really are the ultimate anytime, anywhere fitness program. Why do I believe this? For good reason, you can’t really bring a barbell into a grocery store, you can’t really do jumping jacks in the middle of a movie at a movie theater and you certainly don’t want to be doing aerobics during dinner but you can do Isometrics during all those times and if you’re smart, no one will ever know. In reality, Isometrics give you that power you can’t get anywhere else and its fun to do even with simple exercises.

            When it comes down to it, Isometrics give you that tendon strength, the strength you need the most. Muscle building is great to do but it can only take you so far, tendon strength moves you far forward and the more you do it right, the stronger you’ll be in many areas. Sure it’s tough to find what to work on because Isometrics focus on that positional strength but with the right mindset, you can find a way to get that strength that will give you an edge beyond your competition. In sports, injuries happen all the time but the most common ones are on the tendons and it’s because they’re not trained enough, if they were the less chance you’ll get injured.

            Conditioning in this manner you won’t be able to get from much else because even though it’s different directions, you still won’t have that speed power. We all move in various directions but at times we get stuck in a certain position that is just tough to do, whether it’s from a certain number of push-ups, or that last rep in a Bench Press hell even curling a Dumbbell can be tough but if you worked on that tough position to gain speed wouldn't you want to get it going? Hell yeah you would.

            Isometrics go as far back as ancient Egypt, the golden era of Greece & Rome, Asia and other cultures around the world. One of the great examples of Isometrics was for practicing warfare believe it or not because when soldiers were preparing for battle when at a time when the Bow & Arrow was the most fierce weapon, they’d have men pull a bow they couldn't possibly pull hard enough to shoot so when they used the bows in battle, that pulling speed strength would have the advantage and can shoot faster than their counterparts. Even in Japan where Sumo Wrestling is as old as the culture itself, you’d have these big guys pressed up against pillars pushing and pulling for long periods of time and you wonder why they’re so strong in that position. Isometrics have a long and rich history that it’s almost forgotten today even though there are some things here and there.

              

            To keep the great level of Isometrics going today isn't easy but we can all take part in learning, showing each other different ways to do them and what can we do to prevent the wrong ways of doing them (trust me they’re there) and help others show the way to keep fit, healthy and vibrant throughout their lives at any age. This type of training is a healing form of training and can help rehab old injuries and build stronger bones, tendons and ligaments. You don’t need to exercise for hours on end, most you’ll need really is like 10-20 min. at best and you can spread that out throughout the day without having to do it all at once. Be open minded, learn and practice different styles to find what works for you. If there’s a way to make the world healthier and living a pain-free life, let’s help teach the wonderful and powerful ways of Isometric Conditioning.