400 Push-Ups And Learning About Enjoyment

 Yesterday, I just felt the need to do Push-Ups, mainly the regular or military style with a few variations here and there. I finished off with 400 for the day and it made me learn a few things. As great as push-ups are and how some are so damn fanatical about them, I just don't enjoy them or find them that stimulating unless their part of a circuit. It's not saying they're a terrible form of training, they're definitely not but unless you're in a sport or doing some kind of challenge for a cause or hell if you're joining the military than maybe they have something worthwhile doing. 

I wanted to do them just to see if I can since it has been years since I've done that many in a day. I didn't enjoy them at all quite frankly and if I don't get some form of enjoyment out of it, it's not going to last. This might piss people off or make them think that not doing push-ups, I'm not training right, well, yeah I' am, just not big on certain forms like others. I do what I love because that's what stimulates me and gives me enjoyment whether it's challenging or just having fun with exercises. It's not in my mindset to do that many on a consistent basis which is ok, It's not like I can't do them at all, just a thing to do in a relatively less capacity or once in a blue moon. 

What you enjoy is what you should be doing. If you enjoy push-ups and you can't get enough of them, do a fucking lot of them and I really hope they benefit you. Some will do 200, 300, 500 or more a day and it's beneficial to them, that's what's important, most of the time the numbers are just arbitrary and more of an ego thing. It doesn't need to be shoved down someone's throat fitness wise that if you don't do this many reps or do that exercise a certain way, you're not fit, you're a loser and that's way far from the truth. There is more to life than just push-ups guys LOL. 

I get far more out of animal moves, Isometrics, cables, carries, hammers and step-ups/squats than I ever do with push-ups. Once you hit a certain mark and it doesn't stimulate your mind but force it anyway, you're just going to end up miserable and not get any thrill out of your exercise. More doesn't always mean better, find a balance in what keeps you fired up and still having something left in the tank. I swear on my grandfather's ashes in a pond in some forest in Washington, those 400 Push-ups couldn't hold a candle to the isometric training or the animal workouts I do, it didn't feel the same, it didn't have the same challenge and it sure as hell was no where near the level that makes me love what I do. 

Training is about adventure, discovery, learning who you are and what you're capable of. It's about loving what you do beyond the craziness and the numbers along with the soreness that might come with it. If it fulfils you and makes you feel great even on the hard days, that's what is going to help you in the long run. If it causes you pain, stop doing it, if you're bored out of your mind no matter how hard it is, stop doing it. Never force anything otherwise it's going to hurt mentally and/or physically. 

Are there standards to what constitutes to being fit? Yes but it's complicated especially in this day and age, if you read my statement on the high school football kids about the 300-400 pushups in an hour and ended up in the hospital because of it, you know what I think. There is so much info and so many rules and size differences to what actually makes someone fit that it doesn't matter what you do, you're not going to be fit in the same circles as everyone else. Is it important to be fit? Absolutely but we need to learn what our individual strengths and weaknesses are to make ourselves fit but not comparing to somebody else. We all have various levels of strength that won't have the same attributes to what makes us strong in certain aspects. Not everyone who can do 400 push-ups is going to bench press 500 lbs. Both individuals are strong but not in the same capacity as to what others try to compare to. That be like trying to compare 170 lb person doing pull-ups compared to a 300 lber. Yeah, the lighter guy can highly likely do more but you also got to remember, even if the person can do more, the other guy weighs far more so he doesn't need to a ton in comparison. Here's what I mean, say for example, the lighter guy does 10 pull-ups, 10x170 is 1700, compare that to the heavier guy who can do only 6 or 7 at 300 lbs. 6x300 is 1800 pounds, you see where I'm going with this? Now I'm not saying there's a lot of 300 lb guys doing pull-ups but if you want to play the comparison card, who's really stronger here? 

Here's another example since we're talking about push-ups here....On average, let's say most guys who do push-ups (military style in this scenario) are around 150-185 or so, let's go with 180 for those who like to play this game of comparison. Let's pick an arbitrary number of push-ups to compare to say...300. Guy does 300 push-ups in a workout or in a day doesn't matter it's still 300. let's play a round of Math for all you debaters out there and those who like to shit on who's stronger or who's more fit. In the military or regular push-up, it constitutes around 65% of your bodyweight so 180 lb man doing 300 push-ups, 65% of 180 is what? 117 lbs every time you do 1 rep. 117x300 is what? A total of 35,100 lbs moved throughout the workout or in a day. That's a lot of weight moved for a human being in an exercise, very fit and can total out some serious strength. Now let's make this interesting, I'm 257 lbs. 77 lbs heavier than our boy here, at 257, 65% is 167.05 lbs. That's still quite a bit more weight, around 50+ in comparison. 167.05x300= 50,115 lbs total moved. By this comparison, I'm far stronger and should be a hell of a lot more fitter than the lighter guy. The truth is, we are both strong and fit in our individual rankings in push-ups. You shouldn't have to compare somebody else to what they're level of fitness is by stupid numbers. One has a better pound for pound chance while the other has more mass, that's all it is.

We focus so much on what we're compared to to others that we don't think of the layers of what real comparisons are and debating over bullshit that doesn't do anyone any good. The real point here is, train to what satisfies your discipline and passion for exercise while also understanding your individual strengths and weaknesses. Strengthen your weaknesses as much as possible but not in comparing yourself to others but by learning to be stronger than you were the day, week, year before. In most debated comparisons, you're metaphorically measuring someone else's dick, breast size, ass or whatever and thinking the bigger the better when in reality, it's pretty petty, meaningless and makes you both egotistical. Stop putting others down when they don't have the same strengths as you and/or weaker and don't underestimate someone who may not look fit but could possibly knock you into next week or outlast you. 

Enjoy your training, make it fulfilling and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Slowly Getting Back Into Pull-Ups & Chin-Ups

 

Been a long time since I've tried Pull-ups & Chin-Ups but recently I got the WorldFit Pull-Up Handles and wanted to see what I can do with them. Only a few workouts doing both moving and isometric exercises and I still got it. Not many reps of Pull-ups & Chin-ups (about 3 per set at best) but I'm still able to get my chin over my hands. 

The Isometrics are brutal especially on the forearms doing different grips, hanging, Isometric Flexes in the bottom, middle and top positions along with Hybrid Isometrics. I came up with the idea for a doorway version of the Hybrid Isometric Pull-up/Chin-Up by putting my anchor under the door, loop my strap around and shorten it so it can fit tightly around the back of my legs so when I go to Pull-up or Chin-Up, the strap will stop me from going any further. This type of Isometric Training is a bit advanced but it builds incredible strength and power when it's done right. I only hold for this for a few seconds but it's intense as hell, just as much if not more than the Hybrid Push-Up. You can check it out here along with my Pull-Up & Chin-Up Videos

At my size, 3 reps is actually really good, I know I can do better though. The most I've ever done in a row was around 18-22 many many years ago. Just need to be careful not to go overboard cause there can be elbow problems so slowly progress. I've had elbow problems more than 20 years ago when I was a teenager doing Shot Put & Discus in high school and it sucked. 

Being able to do Pull-ups and such again could be beneficial to my arsenal but not a necessity. Pull-ups are awesome and some people are incredible at them like Mike The Machine Bruce & others. Just want to keep it basic and just be happy to be able to rep out a few, not going for Marine numbers or world records, hell even try those Barstarzz moves, those guys are fucking nuts lol. Keeping it basic and Low-Skilled is the key, have fun with it and get creative with the Isometric versions. Building grip strength, back conditioning, tendon strength and more. 

As Matt Schifferle puts it, Low-Skilled Exercises are keys to strength and fitness, progressing to harder exercises is great but master the basics and you can't go wrong (I'm paraphrasing and adding my own spin on it). You don't need to do a ton of stuff to get the job done, top notch basic exercises and you're good to go. Pull-ups weren't always my strong suit and never had trouble putting muscle on my back without them. This is more of just keeping up with what's possible and edging little by little that's it. Check out Matt's book Progressive & Weighted Calisthenics. One of the most AFFORDABLE books on the market today along with Grind Style Calisthenics, it shouldn't cost you 150 bucks to learn how to master pull-ups, that's just ridiculous IMO. 

Be safe, get strong and keep being amazingly awesome. If you're ambitious and want to add some strength into your pull-up training to make it harder, grab a Kensui Weight Vest where you can put on weighted plates to make it heavier. Get 10% OFF when you use my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT at checkout. Maximum Poundage for the vests range from 80-300 lbs. 

Results Of My Blood Tests

I didn't want to say anything until I got my results back but I had some blood tests done because I wanted to check where I'm at for Testosterone Levels in my age range and what I need to do to either maintain, improve or cut back on in order to be in the normal ranges. Quite frankly, I was surprised with the results.

They only told me one thing that was concerning and that was my triglycerides were a bit high which I kind of knew would be and just need to continue losing weight which is manageable and I already have set goals for where I want to be at. It was basically taking a look at my BMI which for the most part is pure bullshit because it doesn't take into account of muscle mass, just pure height and weight "charts". 

For my testosterone levels? I'm literally at the bare minimum for my age range which is 352-478, I'm at 353 which I'm actually really happy about. I could jack it up a bit and I have ideas on how to do it without that TRT and Steroids crap. For now, I'm just happy I'm in a good range for a 35-39 year old. All thanks to my training and utilizing the best methods to keep my body healthy and strong. From the research I've looked into, the numbers for a normal human being overall is 300-1000 and I'm at 353 so for a human being, that's pretty damn good. Hammers, Isometrics, Cables, Kettlebells, Slamballs, Step-Ups, Squats, Animal Moves and others have made this possible. I'm already losing weight since I've been at 270-275 and now I'm at around 257 and counting. 

I needed to find out where my levels were for the main reason because if it was too low, something needed to be done and I knew what I had to do. Since I'm actually in the normal, the best thing I can do is maintain it and keep losing weight which isn't the easiest for me but it is manageable and just need to make small changes to my eating that I'm happy to do. If I want to bring my testosterone up, I can with the right tools and eating habits along with training like I said. Training with intensity is a key and understanding how to utilize it with quality rest and recovery. HIIT is incredible for developing solid levels of Testosterone and HGH and no more than 3x a week is enough so go do Hill Sprints, Burpees and other explosive movements like slamming a medicine ball or a Sandbell, 10 on 20 off of Bear Crawling and workouts from Darebee would work as well. 

Loaded carries with Kettlebells, Dumbbells, Sandbells and Weight Vests build incredible bone strength and conditioning along with keeping great levels of testosterone. Being an active man does get the job done but it's not always that simple; quality rest, eating good are a priority but also your stress, your training and other things are all connected together to form a healthy lifestyle. 

For the rest of my results, not one fucking thing was concerning that came up, I have great cholesterol, my blood runs smoothly and efficiently, I have no problems with my cells, no suggestion of parasites and I don't have anything cancerous. Healthy as a fucking horse man. For those out there who may be reluctant to take a test like I did for so many years, get it done and see where you're at. Take care of yourself and do what you need to do to maintain, reduce or bring up. Your health matters and keep being amazingly awesome. 

If you're seeking some good suuplements to aid in building testosterone, check out Lost Empire Herbs & Funk Roberts' Sipplement Shop. These are high quality and believe me, I've used some stuff at LEH and they work. FR is one of the best trainers out there today and has some awesome stuff especially for those over 40 and beyond. 

Recent Workouts With The Weight Vest

 There are times you want to challenge yourself or take on a different approach to training to not only be stronger externally but also internally. This will be my last year in my 30's and I want to get a head start on developing stronger bones and tendons & ligaments. I'll still do some of the same things I'm currently doing but add a thing or two to really bust out some awesome strength & conditioning. 

As we get older, we want to maintain a solid level of testosterone and natural HGH to prevent strength loss, letting our bones get bridle and getting injured quicker. Some people take supplements while training, some train and just eat better and others do what's possible. Compared to those in their 50's, 60's and beyond, I'm still young but also need to wise up otherwise I could become another stereotypical older guy with injuries and talking about how great of shape I was in my 20's but can't do jack shit now that I'm older; I want to prevent that as much as possible. There are already many men my age who're already banged up, had more injuries that would make a pro wrestler smirk and have trouble going up a flight of stairs.

Lately, I've been in awe of some of the things Brooks Kubik is doing with his log walks, dragging them, carrying, holding in various positions and going for miles at a time. The man is in his mid-60's, that's insane. I've even seen a few people on my feeds using weight vests for training. Some are impractical and others are admirable but you can't deny the type of results you can get if done right. I've done Weighted Vest training before, mainly going on hikes and walks with my 40lber and even walked a couple miles with over twice that a time or two. It beats running and burns off way more than regular walking. 

A couple workouts I've done recently with my weight vest was carrying an implement while wearing the vest & doing step ups and just step ups with the vest. They were tough and took my training to a different level especially mentally. The first workout was back on the 24th where I did my 2x carry with a 70 lb Kettlebell and 20 step ups (10 each leg) for 20 min. nonstop but I also wore the vest. I would walk with a total of 110 lbs for ten yards, put the bell down, pick up with the other hand and walk another ten yards, put it down and do 20 step ups. Repeat this for 20 minutes without stopping, it's not as easy as it looks. The other workout was today doing as many step ups as I can while wearing the vest. In 22 min and 12 sec I did 416 step ups, that's a new PR for me. That's basically working with nearly 300 lbs of bodyweight when you add the vest. Gives you a different perspective on Strength & Cardio at the same time.

These workouts already feel incredible and knowing that I'm building my bone strength is a bonus. I didn't rush these and just went at a pace that I was comfortable at doing, as I get stronger, the pace may be faster but naturally faster. You never want to force anything. Train at a pace that you can do and then expand on it as you get better. Do you want to get too comfortable, no but you also don't want to be going speedy Gonzales and get hurt in the process. The idea is to train to prevent injuries, not cause them, that no pain no gain  thing is bullshit. 

Grab one of the best Vests on the market today with the Kensui Weight Vest where you can progressively add weight plates. Do all your bodyweight movements with this on to add some more strength based training to your regimen. The smallest loaded vest maxes out at 80 lbs and the highest loads up to 300 lbs (which quite frankly the only two people to ever be crazy enough to walk with that much weight was Bud Jeffries & Steve Justa). Use my Discount Code POWERANDMIGHT at checkout to get 10% OFF of these vests, you can save up to about $25 when you grab the 300 lb loader vest. Want to know how to utilize a simple progression system, grab Progressive & Weighted Calisthenics: Simple Bodyweight Exercises For Building Real Muscle and Strength by Red Delta Project. 

If you also want to add some awesome supplements to help aid in your strength training, snatch up some herbs from Lost Empire and at Funk Roberts' Supplement Shop. Be safe, get strong and keep being amazingly awesome. 

Having Too Much Energy Can Be A Bad Thing

 Among things like Restless Leg Syndrome and other hyper-active formats, the energy we expand or don't use enough of can bite us in the ass and could lead to other issues. I've been known to be hyper-active and need to move around and be stimulated in some way. Often, it's one of those things where when I do try to sleep, my head is telling my body to go to sleep but my legs fight against it and will at times might as well say "fuck you" and want to keep moving around. 

I've been a night owl as long as I can remember at least since I was about 10-11 years old and unless I'm so fried that day, I don't sleep a ton of hours. At one point in my life the longest I slept was 15 hours but most of the time, 5 would be the most on an average basis. Sometimes I would work out just so I can exhaust myself in order to sleep but it doesn't always work out in my favor (see what I did there?). 

It's not easy when you're both hyper-active and have a brain that won't shut up. You try to read, watch a movie, listen to a podcast, listen to meditative sounds or in cases like mine, you train until you're ready to fall asleep. Yeah it sounds contradictory working out in order to sleep because after some workouts, you're at times more energized than ever. Believe me, I've been on both sides of the coin to where some workouts had me sleeping like a baby within about 20 minutes after but some others took longer to kick in in order to pass the hell out. 

I have at times took doses of melatonin which rarely ever did anything, I've taken muscle relaxers but didn't want to become addicted or rely on them, never once took sleeping pills which quite frankly is tempting but I've heard enough horror stories in my lifetime and knew people who were on them. If you've read enough of this blog, you know I despise and hate with a passion for medication. I'd rather be an insomniac than rely on chemical bullshit that has a risk of being highly addicted to. 

When I do sleep, I'm pretty good and maybe not completely alert in the first couple minutes after waking up but once the energy kicks in, I'm off to the races. It's a struggle but you do what you can and not everything is a 100% guarantee. Sometimes your body will do what it wants to do and your brain will have battles. I understand what it's like to worry too much, overthink, anxious about whatever, songs stuck in your head, needing to keep an eye out for anything that could go wrong in the house or having to be there for someone when they have a nightmare. It's at times overwhelming but alas we do need to sleep. 

It's hard for many and it's important for you to know you're not alone. Some people can fall asleep at the drop of a hat, others not so much. I have fallen asleep watching a movie but that tends to screw up my sleep later that night, I'd be totally relaxed for a period but the next thing you know, I'm wide awake needing to do something. Being bored or forcing boredom in order to sleep doesn't work for me, never really has. Do I take naps from time to time, yes and maybe I need to do less of them in order to get proper sleep. It is what it is and you learn by trial and error. 

We do need to find that balance where we use the energy we have productively in order to have optimal rest. On the other hand, some people need more energy cause they're tired constantly and don't have energy to be productive. There's got to be middle ground somewhere. Do what you can for you and make the most of the energy you have. Keep being amazingly awesome and get the best sleep you can. 

Lost Empire Herb Of The Day: Ziziphus