The Strangler Vs The Great Gama: Arguably The Greatest What If In Wrestling History?

 

If there were two men who solidified wrestling into a status that was beyond legendary, it was Ed Lewis & The Great Gama. One was undefeated his entire career, the other was part of a trio that shaped the bridge between actual contests in Catch Wrestling to the spectacle we know today as professional wrestling. 

The history between these larger than life titans is not only unbelievable but it begged the question among the inner circle of wrestlers as to why these guys never squared off to see who is the true GOAT. With it never coming to pass, it's only speculation for reasons beyond our own consciousness and research to how good they actually were.

To start off, let's get a glimpse of Gama....Born as Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt in what was British India that became Pakistan. Growing up, he was already being groomed into wrestling through his family that had a high stakes in the sport of Kushti. Before he even was a teenager, he already dominated other wrestlers by his level of conditioning and outworked many experienced masters in a contest consisting of squats, push-ups, mace and club swinging. Wrestling was his life, his job and his source of fame. 

The man was a beast at the peak of his career standing roughly 5'7 but weighed at best 270 lbs of pure wrath. His strength was jaw dropping to the point of being able to throw guys much taller and at times bigger than him. The amount of Bethaks (The Hindu Squat) & Dands he performed were documented as many as 5000 & 4000 each practically daily while doing runs, wrestling as many as 40 sparring partners and devouring one opponent after another in competition that lasted often less than a few minutes at a time, consistently in seconds. 

The most famous wrestler he faced was a champion in his own right named Stan Zbyszko who was probably the closest wrestler outside of Gama's native India to give him a hard time but as fate would have it, As powerful and solid he was as a wrestler, he still couldn't get the Punjabi Monster down for the count. It was surreal to how this man kept up such a record for so long that what happened to guys like Gotch, Hackenshmidt and others of that era that never faced him? His record as far as history is concerned is still in tact and will mostly stay there for all time, like Cy Young's Baseball Wins Record or Joe Montana's Undefeated Record as a Quarterback in the Super Bowl. 

Moving onto what many arguably say is the greatest American Wrestler of all time or should I say the greatest Catch Wrestler of all time, Ed "Strangler" Lewis.....Born as Robert Julius Fredrick in the rural towns of Wisconsin, he became a man that would shape the very foundation to what would become what we know today as Professional Wrestling. His style was considered boring to paid audiences but to the wrestlers that sparred, competed and watched him work, he was a living masterpiece of an athlete. He was also the man that would succeed Frank Gotch after his death in 1917. A dangerous Hooker by trade (meaning he could cripple opponents with submissions that tore ligaments, bones and dislocations to practically any part of the body. He didn't look like he was carved into a Greek God by any stretch of the imagination, he was built closer to a gorilla at a whopping 260 at his peak at 5'10 but what seperated him from other wrestlers was his stamina. Despite his appearance, he could outwrestle just about anybody that came across him. To such a degree that Lou Thesz (Ed's Protégé) has said that when Ed had sparring partners, using as many as 5 for 5 minutes each for hours, he would just as fresh at the end then when he started.

Mike Chapman who has written countless books on the sport of wrestling has said that even in his mind that Ed was the best period. He could beat anybody, anywhere at any length he wanted to. What truly needs to be noted is that Ed rarely if at all lost in a legitimate contest and most of his loses came from performing matches throughout the 20's and 30's. When it came down to it, he only lost because he allowed it, if he wanted to rough a guy up especially of championship caliber, Ed could do it and make his opponent work like a mule until he wore him down. His match against Joe Stecher was considered at that time and I believe since, the longest match in Catch History. They went at it for 5 1/2 hours to a draw. By the time it was all said and done, the audience was practically gone and 4 referees were exhausted (one at a time bowed out). 

Because of the press and the need for action, Ed had partnered up with two other guys; Billy Sandow and Toodts Mont to form what became famously known as the "Gold Dust Trio" where they turned the slow scientific matches into a much faster paced spectacle where time limits became the it factor and inventing "show holds" meaning holds that they can put on that could get the audience riled up along with flashy moves of the time like the Drop Kick for example. Traveled around putting on cards that took them into the stratosphere of making bank. Eventually the trio separated due to conflicts of interests and having Mont being quite the backstabbing greedy businessman he was. For the record, Toodts was a capable and legit wrestler himself and Sandow (no relation to Eugene) was a smart businessman. 

For Ed as time went on, although still able to go at a high level, was having health issues due to trachoma, heavy drinking and womanizing that would make Babe Ruth blush. His body began to wear down and what once was a powerful barrel chested master, became a morbidly obese of a man that could barely travel, let alone wrestle. He did live life to the fullest that's for sure and his successor in Thesz proved that with great knowledge from the true masters, wrestling will never die. The closest peers Ed had in his prime would be Ad Santel, Ray Steele and George Tragos. Look into these guys and you'll understand why the Hookers were feared men of the mat. 

Now, let's get down to it, who really was the GOAT of wrestling out of these two monsters? Well, like I said, it's speculative but let's see what we can make of it. First off, their styles are completely different from one another; Gama's ability was to throw, toss and takedown opponents that had a combination of Freestyle & Greco-Roman. Ed, was a well known Submission Specialist, meaning he could tie a guy up anyway he wanted and put him in holds that were known to be illegal or crippling to a degree where he could put you in the hospital just by tearing a knee or dislocating a shoulder in several ways. 

Both had a ridiculous amount of stamina from their perspective ways of conditioning and strength training as well as grappling itself. In some retrospect, Ed has more of an advantage because if it were a legit Catch Contest where submissions were allowed, Gama most likely wouldn't know how to handle him, he can't rely on his strength and cardio alone and Ed would have the ability to set him up well even if Gama thinks he's got him on the ropes so do speak. So there's that when it comes down to it.

If it were a a contest that was suited to Gama's style, I don't believe he would have that high of advantage but here's a thing that we never got into. They're 12-13 years apart in age so Gama may have an advantage due to experience of his style of the sport. Ed was a solid shooter, he had to be because it was just second to being a Hooker and if a Hooker couldn't go with a Shooter, it would be embarrassing and that wrestler may get blacklisted because Hookers were meant to be the better wrestler. So in a shoot, Gama would have somewhat of a piece ahead of Ed but I only say that because the contest would go a lot longer than Gama would be used to. Sure he can go for hours if he wanted to but if you look into his competitive history, his matches never went longer than 15 minutes at best I believe. Ed can work a guy in any way he wanted so toe to toe, he would give Gama a run for his money and test his durability. 

Safe to say in some aspects, they're pretty even in terms of being able to go at it and give each a hard fought match. I would say in most cases, it would be a draw but if it came down to submissions, Ed would have Gama within an ankle lock or Double Wrist Lock within 20-30 minutes tops. If submissions weren't allowed and based on age and experience, Gama is the victor but not by much, he would have to work his ass off to get Ed down or thrown. I could see a match of that caliber go at best 3 hours before Gama had him down. There would be a chain of moves and because of Ed's Defensive abilities, he would have Gama making changes that he could adapt to but not easy to conjure up. 

That's really my take on it considering their history and their impact on the sport. No bias, no rage baiting or anything. Just a pure observation of their legend as wrestlers and where that match might have stood on the premise of their respective status. I can't really pick who could really win but from the observations I made above, I think I analyzed it pretty well. Hope you enjoyed this piece and let me know in the comments what you think or leave a comment on social media after I post it. Be amazingly awesome and let's keep Wrestling History in our minds and share it. 

HIIT Workout In 30 Minutes Or Less With The Dopamineo Band

 One of my favorite workouts to help my conditioning is working the Dopa Band in interval fashion with heavy emphasis of resting very little. This is a way to keep going and as you rest, you're only able to change the position of an exercise and then work with what is possible. 

This is more of an advanced form of training so if you're new to it or experience at an intermediate level, start with doing it only a couple times and then build up. The way I like to do it is to take 5 exercises, do each for 45 seconds and then 15 seconds rest. A couple of rounds takes only 10 minutes at best. Once you start getting in better shape, start adding rounds like 2-3 every 3 weeks or so. This type of training is really only to be done 2-3x a week tops. If you're training for a sport like wrestling, maybe 4x a week tops. It's harder than it seems and it isn't some just little cardio session either. It tests limits, makes you work not only your physical capacity but your mental as well. You will sweat, you'll be firing your lungs and it'll be a full body blast.

Once you can hit enough rounds of this type of Interval timing, it should be no more than 30 minutes for the entire workout. If you wish to go longer, that's up to you but for me, 30 minutes is the sweet spot and have gotten results from this. I don't do it all the time like I i have with the circuits and cards lately since I have other training going on that if I go too hard without backing off a bit, it can bite me in the ass. When I do it, I keep the pace at a clip where it's kicking my ass but I'm not going so fast I burn out. What my true goal is when I do this, is to control my breathing as best as I can so in the later rounds, I still have that gas left in the tank to where I can finish strong and not feel like I'm about to collapse from exhaustion. So usually a day after this workout, I would do a circuit but with longer rest periods in between and my pace is slightly slower than doing the intervals. This has worked for my recovery and avoid getting too fatigued.

This type of conditioning works well to keep your mind sharp and have that long lasting strength and endurance. Some people can go for 15-20 minutes and that's their sweet spot, wrestlers would do this kind of training possibly as a post practice finisher to work on certain drills for less time so they can get that last bit of endurance training as they prepare for a match or tournament. For the sake of training with the band on its own, keep in mind that it is a taxing workout and not something that should be taken lightly, You will feel it so let things naturally come, don't force anything and progress according to your level as you ascend. For a 30 minute workout, it's only 6 rounds and even in solid shape, around the 3rd or 4th round, things will have you mind bending shit to find out what you're capable of. 

I would believe because of the use of cables and bands wrestlers have used since Russians have been dominating for a number of years, when it comes to our American style (Catch, Freestyle), old timers like Lou Thesz and Billy Wicks would get a kick out of these bands. Maybe even kept Ed Lewis leaner who knows but these Bands are unique, durable and fun as fuck to do. Seriously, with the kind of conditioning Ed Lewis had, one can only imagine if these bands added even 1% of what he was capable of in his prime. If you knew how long that guy can go on the mat, it would blow your mind just on that principle alone, get an extra 1%, he would have given someone like Gama a hard time or even beat him.  

Be amazingly awesome, get in killer condition and do what's possible for you. Go get it and see you later. Get bands here at Dopamineo.com and be sure to use my code POWERANDMIGHT. Join the family and help support these great athletes. 

Micro Workout For The Legs To Wake Up The Body

 

One of my recent articles was talking about a good routine of animal crawls to do in the morning to wake up the body and even the brain. Here's another option you can work on if you'd like especially when it comes to leg strength, hip mobility and getting the heart rate up for a few minutes to start the day.

Getting the legs going to start the day can have incredible benefits especially if you plan on going for a hike, move around at work or climbing stairs. Having conditioned legs go a long way and as we get older, it becomes more crucial in being able to stand up without help and move with as much ease as possible. Nothing wrong with wanting strong legs from weights but that's only a piece of the puzzle if you do that kind of thing. When it comes to squatting with weights, my main form of it is doing squats with a sandbag, hammers, maces, kettlebells or a 45 lb plate. I don't do barbell squats whatsoever anymore and haven't done it in roughly 15 years. 

Bodyweight Squats are a different story, the multiple variations you can use at your disposal have their place. Shit I do 100-200 squats with the band everyday lately and it keeps things rocking and rolling man. It's more than just doing a typical squat, it's being able to control your body and move with power, explosiveness and even durability. Stationary Squats like Hindu Style, Sumo, Air, One-Legged all work and are beneficial for those who do them consistently. Sometimes however, it's fun to play around with certain aspects of exercises. 

One routine I like doing is what I call the Step + Squat where it's basically walking and squatting at the same time. For those who want an idea of how this goes, check out the VIDEO here from the Bioneer. It's a great micro workout to get the blood flowing and play for a bit, you can do this anywhere and do it in intervals, in a row or in sets. Whatever works for you. For today, it's about doing it in a interval fashion. If you're new to it, get the feel for it just by taking a step, squat down, come up, take another step and repeat to get the technique down. Pay attention to your form and control. Once you get an idea, start timing it. You can start with 20-30 seconds of work and 30 seconds to a minute of rest for a couple rounds. Work up to maybe 5 rounds and then add time like 10 seconds and then reduce the rest to 45 seconds. Over time, work up to going for a minute or longer and rest for 30 seconds or less. For a micro workout, 3 rounds is great. This is roughly 4 minutes total, if you want to add rounds, go for it, personally, I never went past 7 rounds which is a total of around 10 minutes for the whole workout. 

Micro Workouts are awesome for anyone who is short on time and wants to get something quick in or help get their energy levels up during the day in increments. For more info about this check out Matt Schifferle's book Micro Workouts. They're bad ass time savers and can get you jazzed up whenever you need a pick me up. Push-ups, Squats, Isometrics, Intervals, whatever you'd like to do for a few minutes at a time. They can even be used as a finisher to your regular routine to spice things up. 

For more on Squat Walking, check out this VIDEO as well.

Be amazingly awesome and get your body going so the blood flows with strength and power. You got this and wake up springing into action. 

The Legendary Beast: Joe Stecher, The Scissors King Who Crushed The Wrestling World

Hey guys, I'd like to share with you about a real legend in the world of Catch Wrestling, Joe Stecher. If you're into old-school mat wars, or want to know what it's like to have that unbreakable farm-boy strength, this guy's story is gonna fire you up. I mean, in an era when wrestling was raw, no-holds-barred shoot fights that could last hours, Stecher wasn't just competing; he was dominating like a force of nature. Born on a dusty Nebraska farm, this dude turned his body into a weapon that terrorized the ring for decades. His savage techniques, those epic rivalries, and why his legacy still kicks ass for anyone grinding in the gym today. 

Let's go back in time: It's April 4, 1893, in Dodge, Nebraska. Little Josef Stecher pops into the world, the son of Bohemian immigrants scratching out a living on the plains. Farm life back then? Brutal as fuck. You're hauling hay, wrestling livestock, and building that functional strength that no fancy gym machine can replicate. Joe wasn't some pampered athlete; he earned his physique the hard way. By high school in Fremont, he was already a multi-sport monster – crushing it in baseball, swimming like a shark, and yeah, pinning fools on the wrestling mat. But here's the kicker: his legs. Talk about Legendary. Working the fields gave him thighs like steel cables, and he honed that power into something deadly.

Stecher turned pro in 1912 at just 19 and he explode onto the scene. This kid racked up 51 straight wins – no bullshit, straight falls against grizzled vets. He was dismantling guys like Jess Westergaard, Ad Santel (the man who supposedly was paid to tear up Hackenshmidt's knee in a training session), and Marin Plestina in under 15 minutes each. We're talking pure catch-as-catch-can mastery: hooks, holds, and submissions that left opponents gasping. But the real breakthrough? July 5, 1915, in Omaha. With the great Frank Gotch watching from ringside – yeah, the unbeatable Iowa legend himself – Stecher takes on American Heavyweight Champ Charlie Cutler. At 22 years old, Joe snatches the World Heavyweight Title with his signature move: the body scissors. Imagine clamping your legs around a guy's torso like a vice, squeezing until ribs crack and breath fails. That was Stecher's nuclear weapon, and it made him a star.

Stecher held the world title three times, totaling damn near 2,000 days as the top dog. His first run was a whirlwind of defenses, but the shadows loomed. Gotch's retirement left a void, and everyone wanted that dream match. Instead, Stecher clashed with rising beasts like Ed "Strangler" Lewis. Shit, their rivalry? Pure fire. On July 4, 1916, they went at it for five and a half fucking hours – one of the longest match in wrestling history. No pin, no sub, just a grueling draw that tested every ounce of endurance. Stecher's legs held firm, but Lewis's headlock game was no joke. They traded the belt back and forth like heavyweight boxers swapping haymakers.

Then there's Earl Caddock, the WWI hero and farm-strong grappler from Iowa. Their 1920 showdown at Madison Square Garden? Epic as Goku vs Vegeta. Over two hours of technical warfare, with Stecher finally locking in those scissors for the win and reclaiming the title. Caddock was tough – a legit shooter with army-honed grit – but Joe outlasted him through sheer mental warfare. That's a key lesson here: wrestling ain't just physical; it's breaking the other guy's will. Stecher embodied that. He'd grind you down, hour after hour, until you tapped or snapped.

Speaking of techniques, let's break this down like a workout circuit. Stecher was a scientific wizard of the mat, well known as a Hooker – not some sloppy brawler. His base? Catch wrestling fundamentals: control the mat, chain holds, and transition like a predator. But those legs, man. The body scissors wasn't just a hold; it was a finisher that could crush organs. He'd wrap 'em around your midsection, head, or neck, applying pressure that made grown men quit. Farm work built that power – think endless squats hauling bales, turning quads into pistons. He also mastered arm bars, toe holds, and ground control, always one step ahead. In 100's of matches, his record was insane: 317 wins, 31 losses. That's not luck; that's relentless prep and adaptability.

Rivals? Stecher had a murderers' row. Besides Lewis and Caddock, there was Stanislaus Zbyszko, the Polish powerhouse with a Greco-Roman vibe. In 1925, at 32, Stecher schooled the 47-year-old Zbyszko to snag his third title. Wayne Munn, Jim Londos – he faced 'em all, often in front of massive crowds. These weren't scripted spectacles; they were shoots where one wrong move meant injury or humiliation. Stecher's ferocity? Unmatched. Lou Thesz, the successor to Ed Lewis, sparred with him in the '30s and said even retired, Joe mopped the floor with him. That's longevity – staying elite through smarts and conditioning.

By 1934, Stecher hung up the boots after wrestling's gold dust era faded into the Depression. Sadly, mental health struggles landed him in a VA hospital for 30 years, but his skills never dulled. He passed in 1974 at 80, but his induction into halls of fame – National Wrestling, International, you name it – cements his spot among the immortals. Alongside Babe Ruth and Jack Dempsey, he was a 1920s icon, proving wrestling was America's gritty passion play.

So, what can we take from this beast today? In a world of Instagram posers and ego-lifting bros, Stecher screams functional strength. Build legs like his – hit those animal crawls, heavy carries, and band work until you burn. But more? That mental edge. He wrestled hours without breaking, turning pain into fuel. Next time you're gassing out on the mat or under the bar, channel Joe: squeeze harder, get into that Super Saiyan mindset. It's not about gym PRs; it's real-world might that carries over to life. Wrestling, MMA, or just daily grind – Stecher's blueprint is gold.

Be amazingly awesome, keep killing it, and honor the old guards by testing your own abilities. 

A Morning Routine That Takes 3 Total Minutes

Many will often wake up groggy, wanting to go back to sleep or just do whatever they need to in order to get themselves out of bed. It can be a pain in the ass at times and there can be so much going on the moment you get up. Here's a micro workout you can do to help fire up the neurons and get some good movement in the morning.

I've always believed Animal Movement is one of the best ways to train, not for the sake of working patterns but to play and have that positive energy while getting the body flowing. Mimicking animals in the wild gives you a sense of being with nature and learning to control the body that will function in ways that can be lifesaving especially as we get older. It can be treated as fitness but it's better to treat it as a formality that brings back to a time where we just played and have that free-spirited energy. 

A good routine to do is to pick 3 exercises or crawls, do them for 1 minute each to start the day. You can mimic the type of animals you like and work on waking the muscles and waking up the brain at the same time. For me, I like to do Bear Crawls, Gorilla Hops & Tiger Walks to get things going. Since coffee is out of the question for me (I absolutely hate it), this is better in my opinion and it doesn't take long. Even after doing one of the moves, I'm already waking up quick and feeling good. 

It doesn't have to be the three animals I mentioned, if you like Duck Walks, Crab Walks or moving like a Lizard, go for it. Keep the basics, follow patterns of opposite arm/leg and don't move so fast you'll crash on your face LOL. We may not always spring up in the morning but with a routine like this, slowly getting ourselves moving to fire things up, it could put that spring in our step after and feel like we can take on the world. 

Set your watch or timer for 60 seconds, do a move, take a brief rest and repeat 2 more times and that's it, there's your morning routine. Productivity that works cognitive function and blood flow to your system while stretching and moving at the same time. You can go longer as time goes on but this is a good start to your day. If you really would just like to start for 1 minute, that's fine too but 3 minutes is really the stepping stone here. You don't have to go Sonic The Hedgehog on the moves or anything, just start moving and feel your body.  

For more info on Animal Moves, come check out the bad ass course Movement 20XX that has all sorts of exercises, flows and routines that will help you build strength, flexibility, mobility and brain power. If you're on a budget and would like something a bit more affordable, check out Animal Moves by Darryl Edwards who's great motto is to "train like an animal, to move like a human." You always have options. Be amazingly awesome and get moving, your life depends on it and get that grumpiness out of your system in the morning, wake up with fire in you and jump start the day with energy. 

Shoot me a comment or use the contact form to email me. I no longer read anonymous comments due to HARASSMENT and DISTURBING notes that include abusive threats and sexual fetishes. Please use real names and be respectful. Thank you.