70 Pounds Of Fury

 Xmas is right around the corner and this year, one of the cool gifts I got was the 70 lb. Sandbell Pro. I've been wanting to increase the weight from my 50 lber that I've used for years now. It came yesterday and just immediately wanted to play with it. Even to go as far as doing a demo video showing what I can do off the bat including a one arm clean and press. You can view it below.....

I love testing my capabilities and seeing what's possible. With this bad boy that I call Beasty cause that's what it is, the possibilities to build strength and conditioning are only limited by the imagination. Carries, Bear Hugging, Slams, Presses, Curls or whatever I choose to come up can aid in my quest to get stronger. This thing is no joke and it can be a nasty bastard depending on what you do. 

Always said that training is about self discovery and disciplining yourself but also to make it interesting and consistent. Do you have to have a Sandbell, no you can always go cheaper and get a unfilled bag that fills up to 100 lbs and work things that way. I like the bells because they're just different and fun to use. For years now I've slammed, pressed, carried, squatted and other things for thousands upon thousands of total pounds moved and I'm going to continue with Beasty here. Sandbag Training is an old school form of strength training that works and is not meant to be easy. 

There are a lot of things you can do with Sandbells but the heavier you go, the more you prioritize which exercises are important to build strength because you can't do everything with a 70 as oppose to exercises with a 20 or so. It's strength that matters, not for the sake of looking good but to help others and being strong as you age. The older we get, the more reason to stay as strong as possible while still being mobile and flexible. You can be as strong as an ox but if you're stiff as a board and have bad joints, what's the point of having that strength? Not saying to go so heavy you wreck yourself but train to a capacity where you can go without sustaining injuries as much as possible and keeping the muscles, tendons and ligaments healthy. When it comes to Sandbag work, I probably wouldn't work with more than 100 lbs because there's no reason to keep going higher unless you want to challenge yourself. 

Sandbells are a lot of fun and they add a different variety to a training regimen than typical weights like a dumbbell, barbell or even kettlebell. They're safer in most regards and do many things just from one implement plus they wouldn't wreck the floor when you drop them or slam them. They can be great conditioning tools and can build some serious strength especially in your grip and your core. You don't need to be as crazy as me with this heavy of a bell, you can stop at 50 or 20 if you want but Sandbells are a great addition and has a boatload of exercises to choose from for anyone from a complete beginner to world class athletes. Get just one and see what you can do.  

Workout System With Dopa Band That Promotes Heavy Conditioning

I do my best to keep my workouts to a minimum for maximum results that I can produce. Never waste time doing things just for saying you did something. I want to accomplish the best workout I can to get in better shape little by little each time. When your life can be a whirlwind at times and the people in your life depend on you, it's important to take the time to make an effort on your training so you can be strong and fit for those that need you. 

Experimenting with the Dopa Band has been wonders and testing out workouts has been awesome. One of the things I've come up with to get the most out of my workouts lately with the Band is to do interval training by going for a good period of time while resting only half the amount. This has led to doing a 30/15 For 4 Protocol that I enjoy doing because I can go hard, rest half the time and get in a few rounds per exercise to get whatever I need done. The idea is to work an exercise for 30 seconds, rest for 15 and repeat for a total of 4 rounds. Pick up to maybe no more than 6 exercises (you can do more if you want but the point is to be efficient and getting a workout in within 20 minutes or less) and do what you can with them. 

The most common exercises I would do are rows, chest presses (sometimes adding a squat to make it a combo), waves, sprints and lunges but also at times I'll throw in Bear Crawls, Duck Walks and shooting drills like in wrestling to really tackle the lungs. I'll even throw in the Sandbell doing a Clean & Press or a Slam by combining either a sprint or Bear Crawl to it. Doing this type of training a couple times a week will be more than enough, hell you're working more than resting and testing the limits of your body's abilities. Be sure to recover well between workouts and maintain a good level of mobility and flexibility training. This can feel like hell and it's very intense. 

I've done a few workouts with this protocol, even doing one after "warming up" with a Deck Of Cards Animal Workout that takes me roughly 16 min to complete. Do the deck, take a few breaths and went into the Dopa Workout with a vengeance. Went hard but not to push to the limit of a possible injury, you're not trying to break records here. I've only done that the one time and I wanted to sleep it off afterwards, the endorphin high was crazy. I rested as little as possible between exercises of the Dopa Workout only to mark off a set or putting tying the band around my waist. The most rest I would take is around a minute or so. 

I'm no wrestler or even a world-class athlete but I do admire the training these guys go through and want to test myself to see what I can do. I never thought I'd be doing this type of training in my late 30's going into my 40's, if I was able to do these back in high school or in my 20's, who knows what kind of shape I'd be in but certain things have led you on a path to this point and I'm able to train at a level most people in my age group think is fucking nuts. It's heart breaking seeing people my age or younger dying because of the dumb shit they put themselves through or what they put in their bodies to create this illusion of health at a rate that's scary to think about. All I care about is doing the best I can while lessening the amount of injuries. We can't 100% avoid an injury but we can reduce the chances by doing things in a smart way while challenging ourselves. The band has done wonders for me and I love what it can do to make workouts more interesting and taking less time to train for maximum results. 

Get one yourself or a bundle deal for friends, family, group classes, youth groups, wrestling/MMA school or whatever and take in the benefits of being able to train with top quality equipment that you can carry in a bag. Use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT to get 10% OFF your order. Train hard, train with intent and kick ass in whatever sport or fitness endeavor you're in. We all deserve to be in great shape. Be amazingly awesome. 

Are Resistance Bands Really that Effective?

 For decades, Resistance Bands have been a part of workout regimens for many people from Weekend Warriors to World-Class athletes. The big reason? They're pretty easy to use, about as versatile as you can get and very effective in developing muscle while also conditioning the body. Regardless of your fitness level, bands such as Chest Expanders & Dopamineo Bands are awesome for working the muscles that other pieces of equipment aren't always able to touch.

The simplicity however is not to be underestimated. There's a great way to use bands to get their muscle-building benefit. Let's go over a few tips to help you out....

Depending on the type of band you get, the amount of force to stretch the band will work the muscles like with Free Weights or Machines. Now, the latter two uses the same weight in every direction you work with but with bands, the big difference is the more you stretch it, the heavier it goes. It will literally fight you to prevent you from stretching it. 

For the muscle building effects, there was a study done in 2019 that shows similar strength gains that conventional gym equipment provided. Bands may not look like much but they can strengthen the body and build a more natural physique. In a lot of ways, bands create greater tension on the muscles and are able to work them longer during certain movements. 

 Although bands are incredible for rehab and strengthening the body to work through injuries, they've also become a great deal to those who practice certain sports even such as bodybuilding to condition the body in a capacity where they don't have to rely on big equipment to get the job done, they can do it at a park, in a hotel room, at the beach, in their backyards and many other places. For the Dopamineo Bands, these are extremely effective in getting in serious condition just about anywhere and can be used for a variety of ways and also because of the elasticity, has a longer life span than most bands out there today. 

Bands are incredibly adaptable because even with a shift change in a movement, you can make it harder or easier. Some bands you can be very explosive with but with others, you can make them slow as well and have almost an isometric component to it. Whether shortening or lengthening a band, the resistance can be tough as hell or have you working in a greater capacity such as cardio type training. Like I said above with being able to train just about about anywhere, that's because the majority of bands are extremely portable, meaning you can stuff them into a duffle bag or suitcase and be able to travel with them. Hell if you want to get a micro workout in at the airport you can (I would recommend shorter bands because I don't think you want to be sprinting or doing longer distant exercises towards people using a Dopa Band). Besides, bands are better at getting past security than a kettlebell or barbell ever will.

When it comes to cost, bands are perfect for those on a budget and depending on the type you get, you can basically put an entire gym into a carrying sack. I've got my Dopa Band and TNT Cables in one bag that weighs less than a couple pounds and able to carry and travel with. Some bands are more expensive than others but when it comes to the comparison of a machine or a set of dumbbells, its a fraction of the cost. 

For the final tip, it's important to stay focused on the technique. No matter what band you use, don't ever get so sloppy that you're going to end up hurting yourself. The great thing about this is, bands force you to utilize technique in order for an exercise to be effective. They help keep your posture in line otherwise the band won't move as much or will snap back at you. They're a hell of a coach in that regard. It's also important to not put so much tension on a band because you want to be able to move as smoothly and with precision as possible to have an effective workout. With the Dopa Band, it can stretch a great deal but it's not about just stretching it, it's about working with the resistance at a level that you can do well even if it's challenging. If you screw up, the band will let you know so pay attention. 

So are they that effective. I've been using them for way longer than a decade and have used them to heal injuries. You read about how the Dopa Band helped me get over my sciatica? If not, go find that article and see for yourself. Bands are top notch when it comes to training with minimal equipment and working with your body in ways bodyweight and other forms of equipment can't match. Don't forget to use my 10% OFF Discount on Dopa Bands when you enter POWERANDMIGHT at checkout. Have fun and enjoy the journey.  

DopamineO Sprinting

Taking on a challenge can be very rewarding especially if it's through a workout. On Friday, I wanted to test Phil Campbell's Sprint 8 Protocol with my DopamineO Band just doing Sprint Outs. The protocol is going hard for 30 Seconds and resting/active recovery for 90 seconds and repeating this for a total of 8 rounds. This was brutal but I really enjoyed it. You sprint out as much as the band can handle, walk backward to the starting and repeat the sprint until the 30 seconds are up. During the rest, do marches, side to side jacks or focusing on deep breathing.

This type of training builds explosiveness, added resistance to target more of the muscles during a sprint, conditioning, fat burning and a hell of a calorie burner. I felt it but it was a great challenge to me. Unless you're in a sport or training for competition, you don't see a ton on Sprint Training using bands for typical workouts. You usually find this type of conditioning in Wrestling, MMA, Football, Soccer and other sports. Did some research on it and with the knowledge I have on Sprinting, I wanted to see what I can do. Safe to say it was a success.

Today, I wanted to try the protocol with Bear Crawl Sprints. These are more for Wrestling & Football so I wanted to see what I was capable of. These weren't as challenging to me but it was still one hell of a workout. If I wanted to push it, this would be more on the 30 On, 30 Off approach but for most people, the 30/90 would be nasty to them. I did feel I got a lot out of it and during those 30 seconds, I would get in a total of 5 Sprints at a time so by the end I would be around 40 total Bear Crawl Sprints. It's still brutal because you're going against the resistance and you're running on all fours as fast as you can. This is for really getting in rugged condition hitting practically every muscle in your body. 

I've only found a few videos on this type of training and the Dopa Website shows the exercise but not always in a full workout format (at least from what I gathered) and what other videos show is more of a shorter band and you crawl back instead of walking, I like the walking back cause it feels more natural to me. For the most part, you will notice things right away doing Bear Crawl Sprints; where your weaknesses are, your balance, your speed and how quickly you use the arms. It still burns many calories even after the workout and because you're fighting the band, you're hitting more muscles than in a regular sprint in that position. Builds muscle, generates a crazy level of HGH and you're getting optimal rest so when the next set comes you're exploding out as if you're hunting down a jack rabbit. 

Doing these workouts no more than 3x a week can yield many benefits including fat loss, weight loss, the afterburn affect which has you burning more calories even hours after a session, high levels of energy, a rugged physique and building a powerful set of attributes including strength that lasts, speed and cardio. I've used this protocol with different exercises so these are just another outline of what the possibilities are. Workout like an animal and feel the surge of that animalistic strength and power. For a great discount, enter POWERANDMIGHT at checkout to get 10% OFF your order, get a bundle and save more. 

How To Set Up The Dopa Bands

 I've written about how bad ass these bands are and what they can do, but how the hell do you attach them? If you've seen videos of the exercises I do with it, you know I like to use my Door Anchor which is relatively inexpensive but if I were to use say a tree or a pole like you may have seen in an outdoor video I made, I use my isometric power belt but you can also use a loop strap or Dopa's Anchor Strap they have available. The set up is quite simple but it's not the typical tying a knot around something, its a tad more unique than that.

The tying form involves creating a loop by folding the band in half and creating a thread through the loop. I understand that people may want to do things differently but I'm not going to risk my own stupidity by thinking I know better how to put this band up, so I learned how Dopa does it so I can be efficient when I do my workouts. Although they recommend it, I just do what the instructions say and run with it the rest on my own. It's to ensure that it is properly fastened to the point of the anchor and not snap back. I've been snapped by bands (not even when they broke) and they hurt like hell bro. Plus it prevents unnecessary movement where the band isn't working against you, you want it to work with you to get the most effectiveness out of the workouts.

Just in case you have trouble reading these here's the breakdown....

1. Make a loop by folding the band in half. With one of your hands, hold the holding side (where the logo goes) and the other hand grabs the loop side.

2. Take the looped side and thread it behind or through the anchor point.

3. Take the holding side and thread it through the created loop.

4. Make sure both sides are even otherwise you'll have uneven weight distribution and that will disrupt the effectiveness of the exercises performed and throws off what the band is meant to do. So be sure to keep things even before tightening it. 

If you're still having trouble understanding this (It took me a couple tries myself to get it right), check out the tying video for a more visual. 

Installing the Band outside is relatively the same, just be careful not to attach to sharp things (such as scratchy bark or a broken fence). The way I do it with my Isometric Belt is to wrap around the tree enough so I can tighten it in the buckle and make sure the belt doesn't slide down or upward, the same for a pole which can be tricky but there is a way to do it. Since the Iso Belt isn't available, there's another option which is far less expensive is to grab Dopa's Genius Strap. 

For home use, I have my EverStretch which I've used for other bands and WorldFit Iso Trainer for Suspension Training, comes quite handy. I like to keep the workouts indoors but if I'm ever ambitious, I'll take my strap to a park near by and attach it to the basketball hoop or fence and go from there. Dopa shares other videos of how they attach the Band in other places like the beach, out in the woods and at campuses. 

Overall, you're able to work with the Band just about anywhere that suits you and get in a bad ass workout whether indoors or outdoors. Don't forget to use my discount code POWERANDMIGHT to knock off 10% of your order. One of the big things that Dopa also provides is the ability to create your own bundle package that knocks off an additional 15-50% off an order. Customized Bundles can be provided for Youth Programs, NCAA Programs, MMA Schools, Group Classes, Personal Trainers, Private Training for Clientele such as Celebrities & Top Industry Folks, Military Personnel and Sports Coaches. Get MORE for far LESS!!!

Everyone deserves to be in great shape whether you're young or old, beginner or elite level it doesn't matter. Is this thing the fountain of youth? Who really knows but if I'm willing to invest in it since it kicked my sciatica to the curb, why not for those who want to amp up their game or do some training just to feel energized and do other activities with the people they love? This is one of the very best pieces of equipment I've ever used and it could work for you as well. Keep being amazingly awesome and go kick ass in the things you're passionate about.