Animal Training To Burn Off Steam

    There are at times where we can be so hyper and we can't sit still that we need to move. It may not always be because we drank a highly caffeinated coffee or soda but it's our nature to not always just sit around all the time. Don't you find it odd that after sitting most of the day that once you get up you need to move around a while and feel tense and aggravated? I get really fidgety sometimes and my body is trying to tell me "Get up dumbass and move." Now there is thing called restless leg syndrome (which I think of one of the symptoms is breaking out in the river dance) so how do you get a hold on that and relax the muscles? I'd say if you need to move or blow off steam for whatever reason (hopefully not when you're at work or in the bathroom) than go do some animal exercises and just do what you need to do until you are completely wiped out.

 

    Even if we are not hyper and fidgety, we sometimes get angry or frustrated and we need to find a way to blow off steam that way. Here is another reason to do animal exercises, it shows when you move your body in awkward positions at a pretty decent clip it unleashes endorphins that distress the body and after exhausting yourself, in your mind you forget what you were mad at and you're too damn tired to be mad. Anger is an emotion and frustration is the feeling of that emotion. It doesn't matter why you're angry all that matters is you need to chill out. Do some deep breathing because when you get angry, you become shallow and you tense up and you're losing command of your inner power. It isn't not natural to be angry but you shouldn't hold it in or let it out too much otherwise you're losing what can be beautiful and loving from another point of view and letting go of the attachment. I get that way sometimes (actually often) because there are certain people who just piss me off and I feel hurt even though I need to learn that I should accept that's the type of people they are and not be attached to them hurting me, it's not an easy process (30 years of learning) but it helps me train to get my anger out of my system.

 

    One of the most difficult things in life is getting kids to behave and calm down when they want to run around and get into things or want to play more than they should. That's the problem with kids today, they don't get enough time to just run around and have fun when all they do is sit in a classroom. Also that's also one of the reasons why obesity has become the modern day plague in our country because they make kids not have enough time to exercise and they're taking away things that could actually keep them chilled out while in the classroom. They're taking down Jungle Gyms and the Monkey (Ape) Bars because of whatever reasons and I understand you don't want a child to get hurt. Hell in some country (maybe even our own) they're banning cartwheels because it's deemed too dangerous, give me a break. Before you know it they're going to ban walking because it's too dangerous and a kid can lose his leg or some ridiculous nonsense. If you want a healthy child than you got to let them move around and do it without making it a punishment. In Wild Animal Fitness For Kids it teaches how to structure a kid's exercise program that makes it fun and interesting for all ages and it even teaches not only individuality but also teamwork and friendly competition that is safe, beneficial and can even help your kid be smarter because of how it hits the brain when they exercise. I realize I'm not a parent or a teacher so I shouldn't be telling you how to raise your kid however, I've been around kids my entire life from all ages and have seen plenty of things to know that a kid wants to move and find things interesting to enable their imagination.

 

    When we blow off steam, or burn the energy, we relax and mellow out. It's those endorphins that kick in and taking care of the body and channel our levels of stress. With animal exercise, you are moving with your entire body not just parts like isolating muscles but every muscle in the body. When you use most of the muscles, you're gaining more muscle, burning off fat, jump start your metabolism and increasing growth hormones that aid you in staying young and keeping you recovered. For both adults and kids this is essential to making your body a machine that can go and have a positive impact on your muscular system and your central nervous system. One of things I love to do with animal exercises is playing a game where you roll a 20 sided dice and playing around with whatever animal comes up whether it be a bear, frog, ape, bird or whatever and just play around with it till it's time for me to stop. When it's over, I'm more relaxed, calmer, happier and at times hungrier than a bear in spring time but that's a good thing because food is fuel (depending on what you eat). Have fun and play while moving like a Wild Animal because it is not just a way to get super fit and strong but it can help you let go of the unwanted tension you have in your body and help you put more spring in your step so do speak.

 

 

Happy Friday everyone and get the animal fitness courses I've mentioned in this article because nothing gets you fit as fast that is fun and awesome to play with. When you move like an animal, it's not a workout, it's an adventure. Be awesome and have a wonderful weekend.

It Ain’t Your Mama’s Yoga

    I have written about DDP Yoga a few times and it doesn't get any harder to talk about the benefits and why it is one of the best ways to train. Almost all Yoga Programs have the same memo; build inner peace, sweat out the toxins, be at one with the universe and so on which is awesome and I'm all for building a spiritual connection but DDP Yoga is practically a whole other sport. It's nowhere near the level it should be in and it's bad-to-the-bone incredible when it comes to building strength, fat burning, isometric poses, flexibility and best of all Muscle Control. I started training it in June so for three months off and on it has been a blessing. I do all kinds of training but this has helped me lose weight that I needed and didn't change much of my eating habits. I was 261 three months ago and although still could do some crazy stuff, my flexibility was lagging and didn't want to keep doing the same type of training so I turned to DDP Yoga and now I'm down in the low 250's and edging closer to the 240's which has been over a year since I was at that weight.

 

    The thing with Diamond Dallas Page is that he's not your typical Yoga instructor that gives you spiritual guidance and how beautiful life is; he's vulgar, hardcore and straight to the point. He doesn't beat around the bush and he will get in your face if he notices something up. He doesn't push someone around but he will whip your ass into shape and he'll do it without blinking an eye. I like that in guys who want to help people, no need to sugarcoat anything just right between the eyes and being up front about it. Because of that attitude it makes him more relatable to people and some might be uncomfortable about the way he talks but he'll just move on and being who he truly is. Like a lot of wrestling fans during the Monday Night Wars I watched DDP on TV wrestling the biggest names and I enjoyed it, I even saw him live in San Francisco at WCW's SuperBrawl and that was a rough crowd especially where me and my dad sat, we stayed the entire show although we nearly left about 10 times. Anyway, it's great to find an athlete that not only saved his career and build a new one that made him even more famous but also other wrestlers that have fallen off the deep end because of living life in the fast lane and depression.

 

    Because of wrestlers like Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Chris Jericho, Scott "Razor Ramon" Hall, Goldust and other pro wrestlers, the wrestling business is shaping up to become better in terms of ring work and the agility that Jericho and a few others possess that make up an awesome match show that a wrestler doesn't have to age and be broken down. Sure guys like Hall and Roberts won't get in the ring anymore but there are guys that still have a chance to make an impact much later in their careers. When you open up the muscles and really stretch the kinks out, you'll feel like a new person and for a pro wrestler to feel that every match while on DDP Yoga it's practically a meal ticket to making a career that will shape the very foundation of their craft. I've been a wrestling fan ever since I was 11/12 years old and although I don't really care much for the storylines anymore (let's face it after the Attitude Era, stories aren't as effective anymore) but I always admired the ring work these guys put in especially the high flyers and technical wrestlers. When I see some good Chain Wrestling, Psychology being played and numerous submissions and suplexes I'm a happy guy. DDP Yoga could shape the wrestling business in a way that's never been done before and give the guys and gals another tool that can keep them doing what they do best and stay that way even past their prime. The painkillers and steroids I believe will be less and less if DDP Yoga became the workout for wrestlers and keep them strong, healthy and out of the fast lane.

 

    I've done some Yoga in the past but DDP Yoga was worth the effort because it's not just the exercises and the way DDP trains people, its how it's presented and it's relatable. No cookie cutter bullshit, no saying of doing it my way or any of that. He lets you learn what you can do and build yourself up and in some cases some of the people that are true practitioners do the exercises better than DDP and he's cool with that. It's about making it your own and sharing your journey with others in the program. I've talked to some of these men and women and they are incredible people. I've even talked to DDP a couple times even on his radio show and as nervous as I was, he was still an open guy and was being himself. That's why DDP Yoga is worth getting and it may not have the largest impact in your life but it can help you achieve a level of fitness many these days never believe to be possible. It is never too late to get into awesome shape and you don't need to look like a super model or a bodybuilder but a person that is shaping your body both inside and outside with an attitude and zest for life.

 

Have a great Thor's Day everyone and remember to look at DDP Yoga. It will change the way you look at fitness forever. It has no bullshit hype, no actors to fill the mats in the videos but real life people who have transformed themselves into the best that they can be and are still going. Get at and as DDP says at the end of a workout BANG!!!

The Adventure Of Movement

    As adults especially in today's society, we overanalyze movement and how it is supposed to suit us as oppose to just move freely and how it makes us better and fitter. As kids movement was practically mandatory for our everyday lives; running, playing tag, jumping, climbing on jungle gyms, digging in the sand, playing ball with friends on the streets or at a field and not having a care in the world. As we get older what happens to us; bad backs, eating a ton of crap, drinking a beer with our buddies and working until we can't even lift a finger cause of developed carpal tunnel or overdoing work that puts too much stress on our bodies and we "never" have time to just chill out and be free. Movement is supposed to be fun and exciting, the way we can adapt and learn our body's capabilities. Sure we have more responsibilities and making a living but that shouldn't stop you from having an awesome time and just move with glee.

 

    The key elements to moving naturally is running, jumping, climbing, swimming, lifting and moving in various practical directions, also the way we sit and crawl. Now lifting doesn't always mean moving dumbbells and barbell around but why not a rock or a keg to move onto a truck, lifting up yourself like in a pull-up or holding a handstand. We have been planted in our brains the last few decades that in order to get strong, we need to lift weights which is not entirely true because dumbbells and barbells have only been around maybe over 100 years as oppose to countless centuries of humans moving heavy boulders, Egyptians moving Pyramid stones to build monuments, loggers chopping down than moving heavy logs, pulling carriages out of the dirt and mud and what about moving a wheel barrel uphill to your cabin with firewood to keep your family warm in the winter. It's using the practicality of moving a heavy object whether just lifting or carrying it for that matter.

 

    Making movement an adventure would really begin with the imagination. You imagine being in a certain situation that has you moving in a specific and real life manner; say you're a under a house and need to crawl out, you can either go on all fours with the knees off the ground, your feet and hands are on the ground but your hips are off the ground like a crab walk, on your stomach and have to stay low or being on your back and using your shoulders/hips/feet to move out. There are all sorts of ways to make movement interesting. I like to imagine myself as Indiana Jones going into the catacombs of the temple of the Holy Grail and if I don't want my head or my body to be chopped up I need to kneel (or squat down) and roll, balance on the letters of Jehovah, walk across the path of god leaping from the lion's head (the bridge to the knight). Move with intent and creativity that is useful to help you stay healthy and strong, not just looking fit but being fit. I'm not a religious person and I normally don't associate myself with any organized religion but when you have a bad ass like Indy needing to move in serious ways in order to get to these religious artifacts and/or supply yourself with internal life from one of the last three Arthurian knights, you need to have an imagination to have that much fun. Your imagination enhances the adventure as you move even if you're in your house and can't go outside for some particular reason.

 

    Bring out that inner kid in you that wants to be free and move around; crawl, jump, run on the beach, go swimming, climb a tree (or do pull-ups), pick up a heavy rock and walk 10ft just to drop it, sprint down the dock and dive into the lake (just be careful). It's living to be happy and using practical and exciting meaning to move and love being able to just play. Money cannot buy happiness, useless materials can't bring a smile of joy and adventure has no boundaries. Yes making a living is important but never believe just because you make a few bucks here and there think it's going to solve all your problems. Want to be fit, move but move with joy, learn what works for you, get out for a few minutes and just be free and be yourself. Being cooped up can be a bitch and it's not always healthy (trust me I've been there) and make it wonderful. Be happy on your own terms, don't let some bullshit force come in and kick you to the ground, you have the power to fight back because your happiness starts within you not on the outside.