The Hammer Is Coming Back

It's been a while since I've slammed a hammer down on a tire and after some searching and playing around, I have an intention on getting back to hammer workouts once to twice a week (fingers crossed) to make things a little more practical or should I say TACTICAL!!!! One of my big workouts was doing really high reps with my Epic Sledgehammer (nicknamed Big Bertha) that weighs close to 60 pounds. It's a hell of a workout and it has helped in developing incredible strength but the speed and velocity is not meant for a hammer that big and I want to add that to my workouts.

The other day I took out my 10 lb hammer and hit the tire for 418 reps before I started noticing my left hand was getting a little scrapped. Why 418? I was using a deck of cards as my way of doing reps. I was going more for speed and thrust so I swung it pretty damn hard as fast as I could for each rep. This is why once or twice a week is good for workouts because mostly for recovery purposes but also if you haven't done it in a while, your hands might need some toughening up so you do what you can little by little.

I love hammer training and it has taken me some time to come back to it and doing things a little differently. I had previously trained to go as heavy as I could and do as many reps with a heavy hammer as possible. With Big Bertha, it was to increase weight every time I would beat the deck which at times took up to 3 workouts and I would add about 3-5 lbs or so at a time, started at 26 lbs. I can still do some damage with that heavy thing but not for 1000 or more reps anymore, maybe a few hundred and at that weight, it's more than enough. I decided this time, I wanted to focus more on how fast I can go with a certain weight and got a hammer from Stronger Grip that is lighter and only goes up to no more than 25-26 lbs. This is to take on more of a conditioning and speed style of hammer training. 

This particular hammer is something special though and I'm getting a very cool engraving on it that has a special meaning for me. Not only do I get to train with this thing but I get to have something custom done just for me which is why this company ran by Ryan Pitts is so awesome. The Tactical Sledgehammer is purely meant for conditioning and long term strength training and watch the videos of Ryan & his son Logan as they slam, swing, play and power up. The hammer starts empty at 13 lbs which is a great weight to use and goes up to 26 using shot lead which for conditioning purposes, you don't need to go higher than that. 

Hammer workouts are about as old school as you can get when it comes to training. Boxers, Wrestlers, Football Players, MMA Fighters, Laborers all had done some form of hammer work and had some incredible physiques and powerful upper body strength. When it comes to hammers, no one made it look more intimidating than the legendary strongman Slim The Hammerman who made his living with his hammer, he might as well been the white John Henry. So many exercises you can do with a hammer and you'll never get bored but the time and true swing and slam is a testament to a man's strength in the real world. 

One of the things I noticed about messing with hammers is that after a hard workout, it's not surprising that you would build up an incredible appetite. I can eat pretty good but after one of those high rep workouts, it just blew up and I was as you might say "Super Saiyan" hungry if you're a fan of the Dragon Ball Mythos. If you ever noticed how the Protagonist Goku eats, I wasn't too far off with the way I ate after a workout. Another great benefit is the amount of testosterone that is built up, this aids in muscle building and heightening up the metabolism. The more consistent, the more your body will change into a natural and powerful physique. When it comes to calorie burning, it ranks right up there.

Women can do really well using hammers too, it's impossible to build as much muscle as a man unless you take some form of TRT but with proper training, women can build incredible physiques that have very strong tendons, naturally muscular arms, shoulders, back and core. In my opinion, women have every right to be as strong as they need to whether physically, mentally, emotionally or whatever. 

Get your hands on a hammer and go to town. This is real functional strength and has more carryover to the real world than we are lead to believe. It's a working man's exercise but it also has benefits for both sexes or those who choose to be Non-Binary or whatever you choose to make of yourself, it benefits many and builds strength you can't get in the gym. Become strong and powerful no matter what. 

Pirates And The Animals

 Ahoy there mateys, it be a be a beautiful morning out on the Caribbean Sea as we sail to find the buried treasure of Cortez on The Black Pearl. Sorry, had a goofy moment channeling my inner Pirate. Who doesn't love a good Pirate movie? Now when it comes to talking about animals, how are they and pirates linked in this article? Well, if you ever read any of my workouts, sometimes I come up with weird stuff.

One of my favorite workouts is taking a deck of cards and doing reps of animal moves for a good conditioning program. Deck of cards workouts have been around for decades with multiple variations of exercises that even a legendary wrestler used to torture his students with. You can do all kinds of exercises but be prepared to get your ass kicked. It's fun, it's challenging and you never do the same workout twice. 

When I was in Oregon, me and the wife went to this seafood restaurant and I saw these decks of cards at the gift shop that I couldn't help but be in awe of and they were a deck of cards with pictures of Pirates. I snatched it up later in the trip and they are pretty cool. When we got home and settling back into our element, I wanted to do a workout with this deck and doing animal movements were my exercises of choice. My animal moves were the Bear, the Crab, the Chimp & the Duck. I made it through the entire deck pretty easily but still got a great sweat going and breathing heavily. After, I was thinking I had a great game for this.

To make an interesting scenario out of this, I came up with the idea based on Pirate Lore and some bad jokes where it didn't matter what exercises you did, you had to finish the entire deck or you walk the plank but instead of walking it, you are the plank. You hold a plank as you listen to A Pirate's Life For Me (which is less than 5 minutes long) and if you can't hold it, than you're lost in Davey Jones' Locker. Now that may be found annoying or really fun to do depending on your perspective but also if you finish the deck, you can reward yourself with either the end of the map that leads you to buried treasure or reward yourself with good food and drink or whatever. Another creative and imaginative way to reward yourself with finishing the deck would be that you passed the test to become Captain of your own ship and take control of the seas.

A workout never has to be boring and as long as you keep things simple and using your imagination, you can create just about any workout you want with the knowledge of exercises you possess. Workouts should be challenging but fun to do and to create an atmosphere that will have you coming back for more. Now you can do this "Pirate Workout Game" with any normal deck but if you have a Pirate Deck on hand, that just adds more to the fun. If you ever read or learned of any of the real life pirates back in the 18th century you know what they were really about and the horrors that went on but you can create your own pirate legend and make a game out of it. I wouldn't recommend this game be a drinking game that if you can't finish an exercise in the deck you had to take a shot of Rum. 

Have fun and remember to set the sails and head for that horizon because you never know what treasures you might find out there and what Islands you'll find on your journey. Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me. 

The Oregon Coast & My Birthday

 Been a tough year and throughout the ups and downs, me and the wife definitely needed some vacation time where it was just the two of us and getting away from things for a few days. We were supposed to head out to Lincoln City, OR on our Anniversary but that got botched because of that messed up accident we got into, so we made a new plan to head out there around my birthday. Safe to say, it worked out quite well.

We made it to the Oregon Coast the day before my birthday (July 27th) and although it was a long drive, we got to our hotel safe and got in some good ole beach fun. Our first full day was on my Birthday as I turned 37. Got in a great walk on the beach, ate at some cool restaurants and even got in a couple workouts that just felt right to do. My celebration workout was The Frank Gotch Squat Challenge which you can read about HERE.....I managed 10 Squats and than did 152 Hindu Squats in 5 minutes after my rest period from doing 30 second deep squat holds and adding 1 rep after each hold. I felt like my legs were on fire but it was a great workout. 

Continuing on throughout the birthday shenanigans, during a walk on the beach, I spotted a log that looked cool to pick up. I had no idea how much it really weighed but I'm guessing due to how solid it was and the ability to even get a grip on it, I'd say it was around 180-230 give or take and had my wife the photography goddess get a couple of shots of me holding it up. This was a beast for sure and only held it a few seconds which was the icing on the cake of just lifting the damn thing. Nature's weights baby LOL.

I had only been around the Oregon Coast maybe once or twice in my life before this trip and walking along the beaches was just so breathtaking and beautiful it made me miss the coastline in California. We walked on one beach called Siletz Bay that's literally next to the hotel we stayed at that had a beautiful dock and we got to see Seals swimming and resting across the way. The sunset was just awesome and it looked like a painting come to life. Here's a pic my girl took from our balcony.

Another beach we went to was called Road's End that had a long stretch of a beach with bunches of drift wood roaming around. It felt peaceful out there and having fun. A couple pics she took was a stretch of walkway and me just goofing around walking on the logs and balancing being a kid at heart. 

She was just having a blast taking pictures and practicing her Photography skills. She took some incredible pictures on this trip and I'm so proud of her at what she's becoming passionate about. This was definitely a trip to take advantage of for photo shooting.

Overall this trip was one of the best I've had in years and got to see some pretty cool stuff. Bought a couple decks of cards to add to my collection which were a deck of African Animals and Pirates. The little shops we went into were fun but can get Closter phobic because of hoe low the ceilings were and a bunch of people walking around a tiny store with very little room to move around. A couple places we went into was called The Chocolate Frog which had chocolates imported from various countries around the world and even found a chocolate frog from the Harry Potter films which is rare to find in most stores. The other was The Christmas Cottage and that was a bit much for me to be in because of how small it was to be around in. It was cute and had cool items but being in there longer than needed wouldn't want me to celebrate Xmas again.

I would say the most fun restaurant we went to was this Burger Joint called the Highway 101 where fresh made Burgers were cooked and had a great atmosphere of a total beach town style Burger place. Great people, awesome service and just fun to be in. It was the only food place we went to twice. The food overall at the places we ate at were pretty decent but a few were very forgettable. The second best would have to be Moe's on the bay, great seafood place and some of the best Halibut around. Growing up near beaches, I've been to a lot of seafood places and this was pretty damn good. 

There was never a dull moment on the trip and most of my training was just merely isometrics and deep breathing exercises, nothing huge or anything and it was one of those things where I can get in something quick in the hotel room and spend the rest of the time either sightseeing, going on the beach or watch the Olympics (Awesome swimming and gymnastics events). I would say on average when we walked on the beach, we walked a good mile and a half to two miles at a time and had a blast. She even carved out our initials in the sand having that moment of love and togetherness like Teenagers.

It was bitter sweet to leave the coast and for the most part we didn't want to leave. So much fun and just being together was so joyful and full of laughs, memories and finding ways to love one another more and more. Turning 37 was amazing and getting to spend it with this awesome woman was the best birthday present I can ask for.

Why I Prefer 6-12 Seconds Of Isometrics

 Learning certain aspects of training over time, you become accustomed to what works for you and what doesn't. You experiment and find out through trial and error what benefits you the most and how you develop yourself through mind and body. There are certain things many people preach in fitness I just can't stand and there are some that I take and mold it for myself that really hits the spot. The animal dice game is one of them, it helps me learn what to expect from the unexpected and keeps me on my toes. Isometrics however is a totally different ball game and a key form of my experimentation.

Isometrics have various ideas on what contributes to muscle building, strength training, the timing of certain holds and what benefits the idea of training anytime and anywhere. I'm just obsessed with the 6-12 second protocol of Isometrics because for one, I can exert as much force as possible and two, I can immediately change from one exercise to the next and keep my heart rate up. I love the cardio aspect of this and it's congruent with the awareness of my mind and body. With other protocols, it does become somewhat complicated for me to understand.

There are many aspects of Isometrics that do work such as holding a contraction at half the intensity for a longer period of time, the 30/30/30 format that is a core idea that Steve Maxwell & Drew Baye use and others but the way my brain is set up and where it goes can have frustrating directions. Unless I'm holding a wall sit or some kind of push-up or pull-up, longer holds effect my ADD and I at times will get bored after not even a minute, it just doesn't work for me a good portion of time, it has to be specific exercises that I understand and are enthusiastic about. 

The 30/30/30 protocol which effects the percentage each 30 second stage for 90 seconds throws me off and frustrates the hell out of me. First off, it's not as simple for me as does for others and when I'm supposed to exert the amount of force for each stage puts my mind in a whirlwind because as you exert force each stage, you're supposed to know if it's the actual percentage which IMO doesn't. The 50% the 1st 30, 70 in the second and 100 in the last makes no sense to me whatsoever. I just never figured out how that works and to be honest if you're trying to contract 100% at 30 seconds, that's practically and logically impossible, even sprinters can't go their maximum speed for 30 seconds, maximum force at best is right around 3-4 seconds if not only 2. The mechanics are not fluid with me on that. 

I look at longer holds as more of a meditative practice than a strength practice because if I only focus on the strength aspect, I immediately want to exert more because that's my thought process. Holding a handstand, a horse stance, warrior style poses, deep squat, wall sit and dead hang are all great for a meditative practice of isometrics. You don't have to exert as much force and yet it's still effective. If it's arm wrestling, deadlift, wall push, bow and arrow pulls, curls or mid fist plank, I exert as much force as possible for those 6-12 seconds because those to me are strength formats of Isometrics and I get far more out of that.

When it came to results and the way I can time a workout, shorter contractions with 70-80% of max strength is where I thrive at. It gives me a greater format of cardio as well. When I use my Isometric Power Belt or strap, I don't do the double loops very much because it's difficult for me to know if I'm exerting the same amount of force in both arms which in most cases I don't believe I do because my right arm isn't as strong as my left and focusing on both throws me off. Focusing on one arm at a time works much better for me and notice a significant strength increase with my right arm. Calisthenics wise, I don't do single limb training unless it's animal movements and when I do pull-ups my awareness in both arms is decent, it's hard to explain when it comes to certain exercises.

Do what works best for you, use your intuition and utilize the benefits. When things don't work very well but you keep forcing it or feel obligated, it's like mixing oil with water, many people don't thrive in what doesn't work. If doing the 90 second protocol of Isometrics works for you, continue doing it and be successful with it, if 6-12 works better that's awesome too. Don't settle for something that's a constant frustration and no matter how hard you try, you just won't get it and you won't be as successful. There's no one way to do something and sometimes it takes a while for someone to get use to it and become successful but for others, they get it right away or get it in a short amount of time and have a higher rate of success.

Keep at what you love, learn something new and experiment. The more you learn, the more you understand what comes out of it. 

Where Does It Lie When It Comes To Being An Expert?

 Across the internet spectrum when it comes to fitness courses and the foremost authority on training, where do you draw the line of finding someone with expertise in their field that is worth pursuing? Many claim to be an expert in this or that along with even going as far as calling themselves masters of the craft or even a level beyond mastery which in reality, an extreme few even hold up.

Speaking for myself, I can't call myself an expert or even remotely someone with authority when it comes to fitness; yes I have been around it off and for 25 years, more so in the 16 years where I've trained everyday trying all kinds of stuff under the sun. Do I know some things? Very much so. Do I have a good opinion on what works and what doesn't? Yeah sure but as an expert, get real. When it comes to "expertise" or having some kind of knowledge, how would it be defined? By the amount of years you've had within it? By how many certifications you have? By forming an opinion after decades of READING a book? Where do you draw the line of calling someone or yourself an expert?

Ego, willing to stomp on the competition or even going as far as humiliating someone in order to get by doesn't help in becoming an expert in something. Some people are very knowledgeable like Bud Jeffries, Steve Maxwell, Ed Cohen, Dan Gable and Ed "Strangler" Lewis all have/had strong and treasured knowledge in their respective fields and yes I would consider them experts. Their ability to learn from trial and error, failure and success and driven to be the very best, made many people under them very successful in what they were taught. By far, when it comes to wrestling, conditioning, progressive training, building mental toughness and which spots to work with for various individuals, these guys are the very best.

Certifications have their place which is true but real expertise comes into play on how you apply your knowledge with your sense of character and understanding of not just the field but to help give people opportunities to develop their own skills is the mark of an expert. Granted not many guys in their 20's and 30's (myself included) have a complete authentic level of expertise and from the level of that age range they do have a great skill set that they can get by on. This isn't a knock or an insult to anyone, I firmly believe that when someone who has a great sense of knowledge and skills in their field can help me whether it's 20 years or 100 years of experience and I want to learn, I give them a chance and see what comes of it.

I can give an opinion and share my experiences since I've been around this since I was a teenager but not at the level of high end expert. I never claimed to be one and I don't believe in having authority over others who have way better experience and knowledge than I do. I want to help as many as I can who ask for it and sometimes I can't answer or give someone something to learn because my knowledge does only go so far and direct them to someone way more qualified than me. Sometimes my answers for people can be heard as crude, maybe too basic and downright weird but I do what I can. 

Some claimed experts are complete assholes and like to use this narcissistic mindset that because they're an expert should be treated like a god and whoever doesn't agree with them is scum. Very few experts in the world have a great sense of morality but are firm in their beliefs due to their experiences and who to work with. 

Being trained under someone like Bud Jeffries up close, he makes you feel like you can understand what he teaches and makes it relatable so you can learn and succeed in your own line of training; that to me is an expert I want to continue with. My session with Garin Bader back in 2010 still gets me to this day in a good way because as odd as he was, it made me feel like he could be one of the guys and show you stuff that is exciting and enthusiastic. Garin is a very unique person, like Bud, he puts a stamp on training that is often times off the wall but makes it fun and enjoyable while learning how to value the true aspects of creating something not just physical but emotional, mental, spiritual at times and you can't help but smile about it. 

So one last time, where does it lie when it comes to being an expert? For me it boils down to great knowledge, the ability to understand people, have extensive wisdom from experience and proving that success is real with proper applications of the field you're in. Some people can get away with it by just on certifications alone and the ability to manipulate by showing credentials that in reality are sketchy but go over someone's head. Credentials can only get you so far, the proof and the authenticity of that proof tends to show the true nature of an expert.