A Worldly Observation

 It's one of those times where talking about training can be set aside and just observe the world around you and take in things to make not just an opinion but an idea of what you see and how you absorb it. This is a time in history where not only things change constantly but people learning different ideals of how they've adapted or get sucked into trends and information that can be either confusing, buy into it or have such a horrifying view that their way is the path to realism or just reality. 

Trends come and go all the time and by the time they're a hit, they're gone within a snap or later. Society comes and go from every culture and not everyone sticks with that society or areas where as a whole, it is destroyed or revamped. I mean come on, do you really want a society where women have no say in anything important or segregation? There was a time when that happened and in some areas in the world and in the U.S still happens. In every generation, there's always a group of people that want to stick with the previous and think their generation was the best when in reality, every generation had its flaws, corruption, degenerates and many other things. Change is constant and many fear it like the plague.

Some of the old timers like the Baby Boomers or even Gen X have this notion that their generation was the best because jobs were easier to come by, the music was better, families were more wholesome and you could get away with certain things that can't be done today because of social media or the internet for that matter. Baby Boomers dealt with segregation, the Vietnam War, the hippie era, disco, the rapid outcry of protesting in the south and the fact that for even generations before, being a non-straight person male or female (even trans which did exist) would end up one of three ways: Being shunned from family, got you killed if you were found out or scrutinized because it "brought on an apocalypse to end the population." 

Gen X (Those born between about 67-79) had its fair share of flaws like the era of crack cocaine in areas like LA, Detroit & New York, Aids, the only shows that had any form of women being the true star other than looking like a hot piece of tail like Cagney & Lacy, Wonder Woman and a couple others and the early stages of steroids in sports. They had great music, better understanding of being outside until it was too damn dark and fighting violently to earn respect. Like any other generation, it was just different but those who came before always felt like a future generation was weaker and progressed with shitty intentions. 

The world today has plenty of flaws and a different outlook on how to treat people especially kids plus the ideals of how people express themselves in a much bigger platform than ever before. As a born millennial, I can understand certain aspects and at that dad age, it is hard at times to see what kids and society do to themselves on a daily basis. I grew up in liberal California where diversity was everywhere, LGBTQ+ was normal to see and people taking the "open minded" mentality a little too seriously and created flaws of their own. I've seen old classmates on the streets, friends dying due to drugs or abuse in the home, economies go up and down and dealt with people that make you want to knock their ass out but overall, yes there ae bad places and bad people but there are also beautiful places with good people that are loving and caring and would give you the shirt off your back. You just need to learn where to find them, some never do and some find them just in time.

When it comes to those who are LGTBQ+, we may not be able to 100% change our DNA but the reality is, they all strive to be human and more of themselves. Some of them are assholes like anyone else and some are a little out there in the head but many more are good people who want to be accepted as a person whether they have surgery to change their physical exterior or not or to love someone in a consenting formality. There are those out there that actually believe that anyone who decides to become a man or a woman or screws around with the same sex will depopulate and destroy society; that statement is irrelevant for many reasons and the biggest one is this: 7 and 1/2 Billion people in the world, over 350 million in the U.S alone. The population is more overkill than the reasoning to depopulate. When it comes to kids, it's a very different story and everyone has opinions whether good or bad but the point is, kids can be very vulnerable and easily manipulated and I'm not talking about whether they choose to end up with a same sex or trans person, I'm talking about being just as easily manipulated to hate and to be conditioned to believe it is so wrong it destroys people.

There are many reasons why social media and the internet today is toxic as hell and can make people do things that even the devil itself go "ok that's fucked up" but there are just as many reasons why it can be good to have: To reach out to someone for help, to stand up for others when you can't be there in person, to inspire people to do something that can make big changes in their life. To find a place where people have similar backgrounds and can talk to each other. To express yourself creatively and share your fears and triumphs. When there's one toxic person who just rips people to shreds, there are many others who would do the exact opposite and be encouraging and be in awe of you. There's always going to be very positive or very negative outcomes of Social Media and it's not going away any time soon.

When it comes to the food industry, it has made many points to destroy people's health and due to cheaper foods that have chemicals no average person can pronounce, we have a higher rate of being more gullible to accept those foods as food itself to survive but not everyone is able to buy the best foods and not because of being lazy or their job or because of welfare, it's because a lot of it is designed that way and to diminish the fact that food with less than 5 ingredients that the average person can read costs a person's paycheck if they truly wanted the balanced approach. The average middle class family with around 2-4 kids won't always be able to afford food that balances out a full budget, it is possible and there are tweaks and tricks but it also takes a mindset and where you are that can make that work. It is important to eat as good whole foods as possible but it can be nearly impossible when certain "studies" tell people that eggs can cause heart attacks or meat being recalled so many times because of mad cow or salmonella or whatever diseases an animal obtained, hell vegetables have been recalled like Spinach and lettuce due to poor upkeep and dirtied up when they're shipped out and put onto shelves. Be careful but also be mindful of what you eat and reading the labels.

Like I said, society comes and goes, increase in demand goes up and down everyday (mostly up) and we're about as divided as you can get. We worship things that have almost nothing to do with us, we have people protesting about things that don't have a whole lot of logical sense and we bitch about things so badly that we forget that a lot of time its just finding something to bitch about that has nothing to do with you or yours personally. People whine about people not working enough, men aren't really men anymore and that just about every person under the age of 30 these days don't have a clue on what real struggle is. Struggles are real and some people go to great lengths to hide them well whether they're young or old, some people do bitch about jobs but there are others out there who do want to work hard and make a living but many can't tell the difference and end up hiring those who hate the job more than those who need it and willing to bust their ass. 

In this crazy and messed up world, do your best to find the good in it. Have an outlook that outweighs the bad shit and power through the chaos as best as you can with a mindset that proves that it is possible to have a great life even when things can go wrong. Life is not meant to be easy, but it can interesting and amazingly awesome if you know and observe where to look. 

Building Bridges For A Stronger And More Flexible Body

 Happy Earth Day and remember to get plenty of sun and have a blast with one another....

Getting fit is much more than just a physique and having strong muscles, it's about building the attributes that develops the body inside and out from conditioning to flexibility, agility, balance and more. It's about complete control in the best ways possible. With that in mind, having control takes practice and not rushing the process because the fine line between rushing something and having complete control can mean life and death. This is where Bridging comes in.

Bridging has been used mainly taught in wrestling rooms and MMA Training courses but some Bridging exercises have been seen in Yoga Classes and certifications under different names. It's the ability to put your body in positions that resemble a bridge (I can already hear the word DUH, so I just did it for you) and shows the unbelievable ways that the Spine is in amazing condition. The main reason Bridging is used in wrestling is to show how it protects and strengthens the neck and spine along with the flexibility and movements associated with wrestling such as suplexes (or suples as some call them) and throws that generate power in the hips. 

Some of the exercises used in Bridging might turn some people away because of the positioning of the head and looking dangerous and the thought of being crippled from doing it. It is true that for a small group of people, Bridging can be harmful and isn't to be practiced due to specific injuries towards the neck and spine but there are easier exercises for those areas. For the rest who are in good health (as long as someone approves and gives you the green light) and can start, Bridging can be extremely beneficial and even life saving in certain situations with consistent practice.

One of the few courses out there that actually shows the NECESSARY progressions to being good at Bridging is Logan Christopher's Advanced Bridging Course. It gives you the tools and exercises to build a strong neck, back and spine but also make those areas and the rest of your body very flexible whether you're small or big. Depending on a person's size and shape, some might progress faster than others while some might start already at a flexible level than those who start out stiff as a board. 

Although it's important to be aware and cautious, it's also important to understand that even a small fraction of progress is still progress. I wish I knew these exercises when I first started bridging. I got a glimpse of some of the exercises and learned to hold a bridge and even do kickovers but this course takes on a whole different level. Bridging has its perks and benefits more than what some people try to dispute. It's not meant to turn you into a contortionist or anything like that, what it does is training the body to have a different level of awareness and balance that isn't normally done from a fitness point of view. 

It's because of exercises like these that I haven't had a ton of injuries over the years and have given me the tools to train my body from all sorts of angles even though I'm a bigger guy compared to the average bridge practitioner. Below are some videos I have participated in recently and in the past that show what the body is capable of with practice and progression. From the Hip Bridge to Falling & Kicking Over, it's incredible what you can achieve when you have practiced Bridging.

Last video, the move starts at the 34 sec mark. 

The Alternative Route For The Traveling Gym

Training on the road can reap many benefits especially trying to stay in top condition whether for a sport or going on vacation. The idea is to save money while staying in shape and it's much simpler than we have been led to believe. Going to the gym can be beneficial but there isn't going to be a gold's or an anytime fitness in rural areas or up in the mountains if you plan on camping. It's something to have on hand quick and can be set up so damn fast, even the flash won't be fast enough to get to the door of a gym.

Imagine being able to pull over to stretch and get some gas pumped up, while doing so, take out a Super Band or tubes with handles and be able to get in a quick workout of curls, presses, squats and lunges in a matter of minutes and than drive off to the next part of your journey on the open highway. Simplicity is where it's at and it's mind-blowing at times for people top realize that something so light and inexpensive can bring great health and fitness to you anywhere you go. Think what you can do if you could do nearly the same exercises in the gym as you can in a hotel room, a cabin, a tent, out in the woods, at a gas station, in the parking lot of a restaurant or even down on the beach or next to a creek. 

Some of the best cables and bands are from Lifeline Fitness. I use them often on those days I want to switch things up from hammers, animal moves, sandbell training or even isometrics. Switching from curls to a press or chest pull is so quick, I can get a workout in under 15 minutes. Now some have made grievances about the lack of lifespan some cables or bands have and it's understandable. They're not meant to last for decades or even centuries but I've learned how to keep their elasticity and lifespan going that has lasted me for years of use. Once they do start to wear and tear, yeah it's time to stock up on a new supply but if they haven't torn yet and have some life left, use Armor All Wipes. Just take one or two and grip and slide it along the equipment. These will help them last a few more weeks to a couple of months, keep applying every few weeks or so and you should be fine. Ever since I learned this, none of my cables have snapped, the only ones that did, were ones I didn't apply the wipes. 

What are some of the best cables I've used? Here's a short list that I can fit into a small backpack....

Chest Expander

TNT Cable System

Power Pushup Plus

All three have tons of cables that I can stuff into the bag and be able to close it up. I've even taken it on a plane with me and got in workouts right there before boarding began. Never miss out on getting in some good solid training that can be better for you than twiddling your thumbs on a game on your phone or just sitting in a car while you're pumping gas or whatever. Make it work for you and never forget, the world is your gym, the only limit is your imagination. Stay consistent no matter where you are and be able to save hundreds or thousands of bucks in the long run. 

The Burnout And Making The Best Of It

 At some point in our lives, we all have been burnt out whether from sports, exercise, work or performing as an artist in music or films. You can only go so far and at some point, you hit a peak and it's just wearing you down. We can at times push through and just toughen it out but does that really do anything for your mental health or physical wellbeing? If you're burnt out and you can't perform at your best and it consistently ends up being at your worst, how do you keep going without going insane?

Life is a pain in the ass, we know that and there are tough people out there gutting it out day after day whether they're at their best or when they're most exhausted and running on fumes just to squeak by. I respect those that push themselves to take care of loved ones or just themselves and make their living but also it can be hard going on and the light is just barely lit enough to where you're crawling and dragging yourself mentally or physically and it can lead to being a bitter person with life draining out of them. 

From a fitness POV, burnouts usually happen when one starts out and just goes for the kill without giving themselves time to progress and think their superman or wonder woman right off the bat. How many times are we going to read or hear that old cliché of going hard for a short period and than just being so broken down it takes a longer time to come back or even the will to come back? The thing is, it can happen to those who've been doing fitness for decades or even a few years and all of a sudden, that candle goes out. How do we come back from that? 

We can make the best of it by either changing something up, recharge and built ourselves back up or we can take that energy and put it into something that gives us that enthusiasm and interest. I can already hear the "easier said than done" set of shouting in my head and I feel you man, it happens to the best of us and it's hard finding a balance but without balance, you'll fall over and one extreme will come more than the other and you're left with scratching and clawing to balance things out again when you're already on your last breath or physical/mental effort. 

I've gotten burnt out from doing hundreds of squats a day, going too long on Animal Workouts, pushed the weights harder than I should've and put stress on myself that it becomes like depression when it's just not there anymore. For me, when that happens, it becomes a battle with your mental self to get back up and find something that helps you get out of that darkness and get back to that level of not just interest but happiness, the thing that makes you you and a level of willing to keep fighting but at a different intensity. When I need a break, I try to do things at much lower intensity like just doing Joint Loosening workouts or going swimming when it's nice out or go for a small walk or do mediation to clear my head. I still train every single day but it isn't hardcore or killing myself, it's about finding ways to refresh everything and powering up the batteries until I'm at my best again.

When you're burnt out, it can affect your performance and when you're off your game for a period of time, the performance can get smaller and smaller until you're so off it looks like you've forgotten completely how to do something right. Yes there is muscle memory and your reflexes are still there but if things aren't in sync or flowing, it becomes dangerous and not in a good way and could end up hurting yourself or others and it wouldn't matter whether it was physical or mental. 

When you're feeling burnt out or about to hit that threshold, do your best to breathe and slowly take a step back. I'm not saying this for every situation because that's not how things completely work but it's important to reassess, give yourself a bit of a breather and possibly slow the pace down. Listen to your body and your mind. 

The Elusive Isometric Power Belt

I was fortunate to be one of the few people that acquired John Peterson's Isometric Power Belt (The lengthier version) and ever since he gave me one (two actually) it has been one of my go-to pieces of equipment for Isometric and sometimes Suspension Training. For years since using it, I have achieved pretty good results in terms of strength, mobility, joint health and power in my tendons and ligaments. 

It has gotten some bad press by people who never shut up about the flaws John had and it's level of verbal abuse because it wasn't ever released to the public because John can be a perfectionist but at the same time, have trouble realizing that you can't keep promising something that goes on for years without showing or truly presenting something. Although it's sad it wasn't ever brought but it's a blessing in disguise because someone who actually owns one can show the awesome exercises one can come up with. With that in mind, it's not a complete waste.

There are other straps/belts out there that you can snatch up such as a yoga strap, the World Fit Iso Trainer, Rings, Suspension Trainers and others that are readily available. Is the Isometric Power Belt any more special than those other things? In reality, not really but it is special to me because it was a gift, it has many uses other than training for Isometrics and since I was given two, I gave the other one to Bud Jeffries during the week leading up to my wedding. Now that he's passed away, his wife is now in possession of it and if she finds use in it great, if not that's ok too because I know it's in good hands or would be passed on to someone. 

The original belt that John had previously put out was about 10-14 feet long and it was loosely based on the design that Dr. James Bailey used or designed for athletes (more notably used by prisoners that John had written about for the exercise booklet for the belt) to have greater variety of Isometric Exercises that you can carry with you in a suitcase. There were different designs that came and gone through the years like for example the Isometric Chain Alexander Zass used to supplement his isometric training based on what he did to escape prisons during WW1. 

In recent times, an old timer named Bruce Tackett made a somewhat crude version of an Isometric Strap called The Hook where you can attach handles to the strap and do Isometrics from there, it was also used for suspension training and a DYI version of the Chest Expander. Quite frankly it was a pretty ingenious idea and I wished I had gotten it but never got around to it even though I said I would. Most of that product went to his Sierra Fitness Forum members while one of them got pretty damn shredded from using it. Yoga straps have been around quite a while but the World Fit Iso Trainer has been one of the upcoming brands of Isometric Equipment that has had quite a bit of success. 

This version of the Isometric Power Belt is twice as long as its "older brother" and has a stronger form of handling heavy amounts of weight (like it can take up to 7000 lbs before it tears a part or something like that) so not even the legendary Zass or Bud Jeffries could've torn this thing a part bare handedly. This thing is a combination of many straps/belts in one piece of equipment. John even planned on releasing a book of exercise for the belt (the belt itself is 28ft long BTW) but never released it so it's even more elusive if not scrapped but all I did was take the exercises from the original booklet and amplified them along with making a few additions of my own like Arm Wrestling, Bow and Arrow, Handcuffed, mimicking shoveling snow and used exercises from the book Overcoming Isometrics.

The belt is just another piece of equipment I use in my training and it's neither better or worse than the rings or the World Fit but I'm glad I have it and if John ever releases it one day (which 999.999% sure won't happen) it be a nice thing to add to a collection. I'm also probably the only person with this specific belt that has filmed working out with it so if you ever want to see it in action, here are some videos.....