The Magical Imagineering Theater

The book I finished recently was Psycho Cybernetics (The Godfather Of Self Development Books) and enjoyed reading about the Theater Of The Mind section of the book. Although it is a powerful technique, I felt something was missing, something that can be added onto it that really made me believe and I believe I have found it from another aspect and that is The Magical Imagineering Theater by legendary Concert Virtuoso & Strength Expert Garin Bader.

This technique takes the basic principles of TOTM and molds it into a musical composition and visualization element that instructs you to picture what you want, see yourself in a Success Arena that you can picture being in, no matter how big it is. It gives you your own mental camera and take pictures of the success you seek and transfer your energy, your drive and igniting that passion within you to achieve your goals. What if you were so successful in your mind that everybody you know and love were cheering you on for it and initiate that winning feeling?

I have used this technique to help me achieve goals in making money, surviving in BJJ, proposing to my soon to be wife, workouts and others. I still use it for what I want to achieve in my life and the majority of what I saw, actually came true. Here's an example....I pictured in my mind that my fiance would get the perfect car for her, it turned out to be a replica of the same car that got totaled in the accident we were in. I pictured half a dozen times she would get it, now granted that car could've been sold at any time but I felt so strongly that she was meant to have that car, I pictured what would go down with the sale, the shaking of the hands, the smiling, the joy of getting things back on track, being handed the keys and driving off being happy as can be and guess what happened, it all came true.

Sure I didn't use this technique for me but because of my strong beliefs and the little steps that took to make it happen, it worked and if that could happen, picture how your goals can be achieved with the belief, the passion, the steps taken and the laser-like focus you have on what you desire. I'm not saying this technique will do everything for you and you don't do anything after listening to it, it gives you the ability to take strong actions and powerful steps to make your dreams a reality and they won't just happen without feeling behind them, you set the tone for a goal, you picture it, you feel it as if it was real in that very moment, you heighten that winning feeling and you see yourself feeling that way every single time.

This technique leads you down that path to that winning feeling, the turning of the key to rev up the engine, the driving force behind your desires and fueling your passion that is unlimited. Harness your desires in your own arena of The Magical Imagineering Theater, where everything is possible as long as you feel it, dream it and infuse your passion that is yours and making your goals a reality.

Getting More Into The Flow....Animal Flow That Is

Sometimes you change things up to get another perspective on training the body. I've been intuitively doing the Animal Flow movements a lot more lately mainly for the great stretching component and combining the elements of Animal Flow, Dynamic Stretching & the Static Holds of the Beast & Crab. They're not easy to do and a continuous flow adds on the conditioning aspects but the concentration and the way you switch from one to another isn't always done at a fast pace.

Sometimes after doing my Indian Club Workout, i'll come back in and do the stretching part of Animal Flow or combine the stretching of Animal Flow, Ginastica Natural & DDP Yoga. Some have similar movements but the more you keep going and lengthening your body, it becomes a hell of a workout. I find it relaxing and strengthening the brain to figure out where to go and finding out how you can move and hold positions in the snap of the fingers. I don't do a particular routine but I like to fixate on the movements themselves and what's possible to make transitions and really stretch.

Practicing this often really opens up the body and wakes up the joints. My focus right now is more on conditioning and flexibility, it has put everything else into place. I wonder if this will help with my BJJ and breath control? Anything is possible if you figure out a way to do it. The more you get into it, the more fun it becomes and it can be even fun in the beginning just learning the basics. Being playful brings out our inner youth and can be a great stress reliever. Have fun with Animal Flow my friends.

Update On The Indian Clubs

Although it's only a few days but I started noticing a few differences in using the Indian Clubs. My shoulders feel a lot looser and feeling a little sharper mentally. They're a lot of fun to use so far and am happy with what they can do. I don't do a particular style of a routine, I just learn what I can do and forming patterns learned from videos and researching on the clubs.

The clubs really are a lost art in the realm of Physical Culture and with "new" and exciting programs coming out like a whirlwind today, it becomes harder and harder to find some real classic training ideas. Some companies still bring up the clubs to help people with their fitness like Onnit, Scott Sonnen's Clubbell Training, John Wood's Oldtime Strongman Site and one man who has mastered the art of the Mace and that's the big man Rik Brown.

The patterns can be tricky to learn at first like anything else but if you're willing to keep practicing and learn as you go along, sooner or later, those patterns will form smoothly and with great conviction in the movements. I do these as a first workout for the day and opening up the body and waking up the joints and muscles. The pair I have is only 2 pounds but that couple pounds can feel heavier as you keep going and hits your grip like crazy due to the steadiness you need to keep from flopping around or accidently letting go and possibly breaking something or hurting somebody.

I do recommend you get a pair yourself and learn how to use them for your benefit. Old school fitness can teach you a lot about what can be useful in the future and as awesome as some programs are today, the classics are there for a reason and not always to collect dust. There are tremendous benefits and developing the body in a healthy manner and having fun. It really works the brain too because you're constantly using patterns you don't normally use in an exercise implement on the count of most exercises have a up and down, left and right range of motions that have limited usage but when you can use your body for all sorts of directions and using circular movements for healthier purposes it goes beyond just the muscles and joints. 

Getting Ready For The Indian Clubs

One of the things I've been wanting to get for a long time is finally coming true and that's having a set of Indian Clubs. I have a Mace and a couple Thor Hammers at home that I use from time to time in Indian style training but knowing that having the classic style Clubs will be in my possession is another layer of icing on the cake.

For those playing the home game and wondering what the hell the Clubs are; they're an ancient training tool for the middle eastern wrestlers that dominated their variation of the sport for centuries and arguably started the Physical Culture evolution. There are heavier weighted clubs you can grab but that's mainly for strength purposes and only for those particular athletes that are at an advanced level of elite competition. Wrestlers were considered the elite group of athletes in India for many years and were some of the most feared in their time. The most famous and arguably the greatest of all Indian Wrestlers was the Great Gama who was undefeated in 5000 Matches over a 50 year career.

Back to the Clubs; the lighter sets focused more on mobility and conditioning to keep the body healthy and targeting the shoulder joints and arm agility. This helped keep wrestlers in shape especially with the way they grip, these guys could squeeze the living hell out of you and they're serious business. In addition to calisthenics, wrestling, running, rope climbing and gymnastic type movements, they were in far better condition than many of the elite wrestlers around the world. The lighter Clubs became a staple for Physical Culture within the British Army in the Victorian Era as soldiers were taught a series of exercises that educated the musculature structure and evolved this style of training for health enthusiasts in Europe and eventually in the United States.

In the 20's and 30's, Club training started winding down due to up and coming training methods brought on the weightlifting popularity that took the world of fitness at the time by storm. Gymnasiums becoming more like a Health Club and revolutionizing fitness to whole new era. In the last decade, the Indian Clubs have slowly started making a comeback due to bringing back the ideal methods of functional movement and increasing the health of the joints and ligaments regardless of age.

Companies such as Onnit, RMAX, Atomic Athletic and others provide variations of the Indian Clubs from modern craftsmanship of Metal and Wood to the classic development of the Persian Meels that were a staple in Indian Culture. I got my Clubs from here and started training my shoulders to prepare for them using the Chest Expander and doing various exercises to hit from many angles as possible. I snatched up a 2 lb. pair of Clubs and sure the weight may seem like nothing but when you dig into the movements and keeping a solid grip and utilizing your core, shoulders and arms, they can give you a workout that will blow your mind. Kids at a young age can do them, people in their 40's, 50's, 60's and beyond can do them, they're amazing for combat athletes and can aid the average joe in getting him/her into amazing shape.

Grab a pair for yourself and open up a new door to a world of fitness that has become nearly a lost art. Do the very same exercises as soldiers from the 1800's to the athletes of early 20th century. Be a part of history again in the technological age and get your body fit in the old school style.

Taking A Literal Hit This Holiday Season And The Vast Roller-Coaster Of The Aftermath

This Christmas was probably the worst one I've ever experienced in my life and am ready to talk about it. One week ago today, we were having a nice Xmas eve and found out about my outfit for my wedding, so we had to deal with that since we waited a month for it. As we were coming back home from being at the post office within mere seconds, a guy decided to pull a fast one and tried to yield left as we were going through a green light and we crashed into him.

My fiance was driving, my mom was in the passenger seat and I was sitting behind my fiance. It was about a cluster fuck as you can get and the mixed words of who was at fault. We at 1000% had the right away and it was this jackass's fault and it was determined earlier this week that we were in the clear but not without emotional trauma and the mere fact that my girl's car was totaled and is now forced to get another one because even with insurance claim, there isn't enough to pay off the damage done to her car.

I have had to do my best to take care of both my mom and my fiance on a mental and emotional level just so things didn't escalate to a severe breakdown by all three of us. I don't know how she did it but my girl still found a way to get to work and we went to a Xmas gathering at her dad's which was fun and had a good time but that was the only fun we really ever had this whole week. Back to the accident; from witnesses to members of the driver being there, it was just full of adrenaline, placing blame and talking to cops with the best composure we can muster. It was cold as hell and the warmest thing had on were my sweats along with a t-shirt and shoes. I was so irate with one witness I almost lost it. I did apologize to him but than he had to egg some shit on.

My fiance's ex sister in law was at the scene literally coming out of an area from a bank that was just next to the sidewalk where the scene of the accident was. She did her best to be there for us and I'm thankful for what she did to help my girl out. The cops were night and day in terms of dealing with us and it didn't help much when one cop is being nice one way and a dick the next but another cop was amazing and worked with us and took whatever statement we gave him and remained professional.

In the midst of all this, despite having thoughts of hurting this guy who ruined our Xmas and traumatized me and the two women that are most important to me in my life, I'm glad neither he or his girlfriend who was his passenger was hurt physically. There wasn't very much sleep this entire week and even with insurance, there's only so much that could be done and my girl is so devastated about her car that she worked so hard to get and now being taken away from her just crushed a piece of her. On a good note, there's a high possibility that she can get a new car exactly like the one she had down to the very year and model. It's only a matter of time and negotiating to make it happen.

I can't say what else we are able to do as we move forward from this but it made me step up as a man and be there not just for both of them at the same time but to give them something to be positive about and understand that although we went through this together, things could've gone way more up shits creek and we are universally lucky that car saved us because if it was in my mom's car and my mom was by herself, she could've easily been in the hospital with severe injuries. Despite my issues and dealing with my own line of PTSD, I didn't care about me and focused everything I could on my mom and soon to be wife. I still did my workouts and I'm so thankful not one person on either side got injured in that accident plus making the most of what I can do.

Although this article didn't come on a good note and is the very last one before New Years, I want to wish all of you a safe and happy New Year. Take care of each other, love one another and do the best in your abilities to make the New Year a mighty one and cherish what you have and what you can look forward to. Don't make resolutions so far out of your reach, shine bright with goals that will benefit you not just for the year but more importantly just to make the day a little better even for a single moment because the littlest things down to the very fraction, can create the biggest impact both short term and long term.