A Battle Rages Along The Open Land

 

A hungry wolf rises and steps out of its den in the forest. It journey's out into the open land with no prey in sight except for one he sees in the distance. A lone bison eating as the cool autumn air blows on its fur. The bison doesn't see the wolf but senses something yet also can't put a mark on it.

The wolf starts to prepare to pounce the bison, knowing it will be a battle. He breathes and starts to visualize how he will kill. His hunger is powerful but his will, strength and endurance are on his side. This could be his final moments and this fight will be different than the others. He doesn't have his pack, but the bison doesn't have his herd either so there's the confliction of strategy. 

The moment comes and the wolf charges. Starts ravaging the 2000 lb beast with every fiber of its being. The bison resists and begins defending himself, using those mighty horns to strike into the flesh of the large canine. Both bleeding, both are wearing down but the fight keeps going. Bison is strong with incredible power but the wolf has stamina and the desire to do what's necessary in order to eat. 

Time seems to stands still for such intense war but in reality, it's just a short moment in comparison. At the end of this battle, the wolf triumphs as the bison is brutally torn and down for the count in defeat. This hungry 4 legged monster wins his prize, gave everything he had and made his kill worth it. He feeds until full, heads back to the den and gets to sleep as he survives his day. 

This was going through my mind as I laid eyes on the park I walked to. Not a soul on the grass, all alone in the cold, in sweats and my sweatshirt. Getting ready to battle the Dopamineo Band. Set it up around a tree next to the playground, put on some hard rock and got myself into the zone. Not the typical workout I do but I wanted to see what it would do for me. Focusing on each exercise with intent, focus and technique. Not so much formulating strength but utilizing form, explosiveness , coordination and endurance with the very little rest I had between sets only taking in 4-5 deep breaths.

10 Exercises for 3-4 sets each of 15-30 Reps. The only thing that mattered was winning the fight with each exercise and completing my task. No one coaching or guiding me, no one to distract me and sure as hell no one to encourage or cheer me on. I had only myself to blame if things went wrong, only I could win or lose in this workout and my responsibility to expect the unexpected because I hadn't done this specific workout before. 

Chest Flys - 3x15

Wave Pulls - 3x15

Uppercut To Squat - 3x15

Curls - 3x15

Tricep Pulls - 3x15

Ski Jumps - 3x15

One-Arm Rows - 3x15 Per Arm

Propeller - 3x30

Squat + Chest Press Combo - 3-4x15

Butterfly Pull + Squat - 3x15

Made it through and felt the endorphins kick in with a vengeance, almost couldn't think straight but I got my bearings. It was tough but I needed to see what I was capable of. A session different from the others but one that put a new perspective of a scheme that stretches the limits. It was awesome and couldn't have picked a better day to do it. Grateful for this type of training and had a blast. 

Grab a band for yourself or for your gang of fitness maniacs and tackle workouts like the wolf battling the bison. Use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order and take your training with you just about anywhere, even in the forest. Go kill it and be amazingly awesome. 

Fingertip Push-Ups: Forge Iron Grip & Unbreakable Will

Listen up.....You want strength that screams dominance? Power that radiates from your core to the tips of your fingers? Then it’s time for a challenge, upgrade your push-ups and step into the arena of fingertip push-ups. This isn’t just an exercise—it’s a declaration of intent, a fuck you to normal and a path to forging a grip that crushes and a mind that conquers. Let’s break it down, raw and real. 

What Are Fingertip Push-Ups?  

Fingertip push-ups are exactly what they sound like: you’re pressing your body off the ground, but instead of flat palms, you’re balancing on the tips of your fingers. It’s you, gravity, and pure, unfiltered grit. This move doesn’t just torch your chest, shoulders, and triceps—it transforms your hands into weapons, your forearms into steel cables, and your mental toughness into something unstoppable. Martial Artists, Wrestlers, Climbers & Others know the epic badassary of this move.

Why The Hell Bother? Well, The Gains Are Real  

(Here Are The Awesome Benefits)

- Grip Strength: Your fingers are forced to stabilize your entire bodyweight. That’s grip training on steroids. Want to crush a handshake or dominate in the gym? This is your e-ticket bro. 

- Forearm Power: Those muscles in your forearms will pop like never before. Think Popeye, but without the spinach obsession.

- Mental Fortitude: Balancing on your fingertips while fighting gravity ain’t easy. It’s a mental gauntlet that builds discipline and focus. It teaches you how control and to have your body and mind be as one. Wonder Twin Powers Activate.

- Injury Prevention: Stronger fingers and wrists mean less chance of tweaking something when you’re lifting heavy or throwing punches. Like giving massages? People may mistake even your pinky for your elbow.

- Badass Cred: Let’s be real—doing push-ups on your fingertips looks hardcore. It’s a flex that shuts mouths and turns heads. Steel Cords with Fingers that have the strength and power of Eagle Talons.  

How to Crush It With Efficiency?  

Don’t just dive in like a reckless probe. Build the foundation, then dominate. Here’s the blueprint:  

1. Start Smart: If you’re new, don’t ego-trip. Begin with knee fingertip push-ups to get your fingers used to the load. Spread your fingers wide, keep your core tight, and lower slow. Feel the burn in your hands and forearms.  

2. Progress Like a Beast On A Mission: Once knees are too easy, go full plank. Start with a few reps to get a feel for them, in the best form possible. No sagging hips or half-assed range of motion. Full lockout to chest near the floor. Work into sets and also challenge yourself to how many you can do in a row. Once you can do 20 or more reps, you're on your way to building not just fingers but sharp and powerful claws like Wolverine's Adamantium. Rest as long as needed between sets, these are to be respected and they will bite you in the ass if you don't do them in an effective manner.

3. Finger Placement: Use all five fingers for balance, but as you get stronger, experiment. Try your thumb, index, and middle fingers for an extra challenge. Bruce Lee did this with just his damn thumb. And with incredible intensity—be like the Dragon.  

5. Mix It Up: Elevate your feet for more intensity, or try one-arm fingertip push-ups if you’re feeling like a god. Slow negatives (3-5 seconds down) will torch you even harder. If you think you're strong, try doing them for 1 Rep that takes a WHOLE MINUTE, this gives a whole new meaning to the term Time Under Tension.   

Pro Tip:

Be aware because these are not to be messed with. Injuries can be a real bitch and it's not fun to have busted fingers. You won't be useful to anyone. 

Who Should Do These?  

Anyone with the guts to be more than average. Climbers, martial artists, fighters and lifters will love the grip gains. Desk jockeys, you need this to counter weak wrists from typing all day. Even if you’re just chasing mental toughness, fingertip push-ups will test your soul. Just check with a doc if you’ve got wrist or finger issues—don’t be a hero with bad joints.   

Fingertip push-ups aren’t just about strength—they’re about proving you’re built different. Every rep carves out a stronger you, physically and mentally. Start today, embrace the grind, and watch your hands, your body, and your life transform. The weak stay on the ground. The strong rise. Which are you?  

Drop a set, tag me @powerandmight, and show the world you’re forged in fire. Be amazingly awesome. #FingertipPushUps #Unbreakable #PowerAndMight  

*Note: Always consult a professional before starting new exercises, especially if you have pre-existing conditions. Stay safe, stay strong.*

Time Under Tension Push-Ups

 When it comes to Push-Ups, they're one of the top essential forms of Bodyweight Training. Been used for as long as before the Roman Empire and has more variations than we can even care to count. Learning dozens of them myself over the years. The amount of variations is not what's important, what is important is how valuable are they to you and what you want to do for various goals. 

The military uses the standard push-up mainly in all branches and are a cornerstone for testing a man & women's upper body strength. In sports, push-ups have been a part of programs since the early days of Kushti, a style of wrestling from India. They would what we today call the Hindu Push-up. Some call it cat push-ups, others call it judo push-ups (or a variation of it) but all in all, its a pretty damn good one. Karl Gotch made this a primary next to the squats for his wrestlers.

Push-ups can be used in all sorts of ways...You can do them one handed, slow, fast, elevating the feet, using a wall, do them on balls, using handles such as the Push-Up Grip Spikes, use your fingers, your knuckles, your wrists and many others in between. In reality however, you can know all the variations but which ones work best for you?

One of the big methods of doing push-ups is doing them in high reps like hundreds to a thousand a day. People like Gotch, Herschel Walker, Ray Lewis, even the legendary actor Charles Bronson would do their training that way and were successful. Now, they did multiple variations with a rep/set scheme to build up to those high numbers and would do them throughout the day, at times in one workout. High reps or leading up to a certain number by the end of a workout or day are good and can build muscle, strength & endurance, but it's not meant for EVERYONE!!! Is it required from a general POV to do a high level of reps? No, unless you're in a sport, the military or have a certain goal, you can do them in different formats and still get great results. High reps are an option, that's really it. Is it impressive, hell yes. Shit I've done as many as 600 in one workout, not that many since and at times would up to 250-300 but 100 or so is more than even I will need since I got other ways to make things interesting.

When it comes to form, people debated what looks like the perfect push-up, crisp, sharp and keeping things smooth. The trouble is, people have different body types and not every form of a push-up is going to look like you're building muscle like a Dragon Ball Character. It depends on what you're shooting for. Some will do them in a shorter range of motion to build muscle in specific areas. Form can be a complex ideal but the objective is to utilize what gives that individual benefit and helps prevent injuries as much as possible.

It is very possible like any other method that injuries occur with push-ups if you don't respect the exercise and your form is so freakishly bad that tendonitis, rotator cuff issues, joint problems in the wrists and elbows can happen either over time or even during/after a workout. Pay attention to what you're doing. You don't need to set a record every fucking time. Be aware of how your body operates during certain variations.

Now, the point of this article is to not show several variations or tell you you shouldn't do push-ups in high reps, this is another option to look into especially for those who are over 40 and beyond and need something that doesn't always require killing yourself in order to get results. One way to go about them is doing what's called Time Under Tension in an Isometric format....

You hold a push-up let's say military style for example in the top position for a period, then hold at parallel but your chest doesn't touch the ground and hold that for a period. Simple really but the longer you hold either way, you're going to feel things not from typical repetition push-ups. You're building a different level of strength and control. It's not about speed, it's about precision and focus. This is constructed as a yielding isometric or in other words fighting gravity. You can do them on your palms, your knuckles or even on your fingertips if you're feeling ambitious but this style of TUT has incredible benefits for maintaining strength & endurance especially for older folks. You don't need to do a ton of them to feel it. 

Different ways to do this would be....

The 90 Second Push-up where you hold for 45 Seconds at the Plank Position and then 45 Seconds with arms bent staying in the middle point as best as possible and not letting your sternum touch the floor. 45 seconds may not seem long but when you're fighting to stay in alignment as you turn those muscles on, the contraction becomes the biggest entity. You're not flexing at 100% but you're using enough tension to where you're whole body is one unit. You can go longer if you wish or it it's possible for you but you catch my drift.

The other is doing Push-ups at different times without dropping to the floor. Let's say you want to do something for 2 minutes; you hold the top for 30 seconds, mid point for 30 seconds, top for 15, mid for 15, top for 15 & mid for 15 without ever having your chest or knees touch. That's 3 Push-ups in 2 minutes. May not seem like that long but again, you're fighting to stay aligned and you're not just building strength but endurance, control and teaching the body to act as one. 

These two alone can be done with different variations but I like them because they can be used as part of a workout in between other exercises. I'll do a 60-90 Sec Push-up in between Isometric Exercises where I would do 3 positions and then a push-up and repeat that a few times before calling a day. This works in unison focusing on Strength & Stamina at the same time and going from a Overcoming to a Yielding to challenge my body with little rest. I feel lighter on my feet, have energy, feel stronger and it works as prehab/rehab form as well keeping my joints healthy. 

There are many options and these two are another style you can do to make your training interesting. Is it the fountain of youth? Maybe, maybe not but none of us want to go through that "I've fallen and can't get up" phase of our lives and I believe Isometric Training is a great way to minimize or even prevent it even. Find what works for you and benefit from it. The way you train will indicate what your capabilities are later in life. Be amazingly awesome and kick ass.