Tradition Won't Always Help You Move Forward

Traditions are basically certain things people celebrate or do something that requires what happened in the past. There are holidays, anniversaries, birthdays, going to certain places, rituals, traditions involving old school mates and whatever else you can come up with. They are past tendencies that places people to have remembrance or utilizing certain concepts on the new generation. Don't get me wrong, I love certain traditions like Xmas, Halloween, my moments on the day I broke my legs, celebrating with friends and family and all that but I don't define myself having a tradition that is purely on someone else's.

Xmas is at least to me is a great time of year; forget about the horrifying shopping, the organizing of get togethers and having a mess of food to clean up, I see it as a time to be with the people you love whether it's with one person or a hundred and sharing the smiles and laughter plus giving to others. To me that's a great tradition, I'm not religious or go to church or anything like that and I don't see it to celebrate Jesus' B-day yet it's the last big celebration before new years start; the winter solstice and a time to share the light among a darker season. Some traditions do work I highly believe that but only some of the time, not all the time. If some of these traditions were perfect and nothing is balanced, it be boring or too mushy hell it may even make you want to say "screw this" at times. The one tradition I do believe in is not a holiday or a seasonal celebration or even a symbol of made up history; it's the tradition of basic and creative exercise and movement where you use the concepts of the old school teachers of the past (sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it?) and use them in the modern age where technology and anyone with the name "certified" trainer is written on someone's forged certificate runs rampant yet still give the knowledge that was passed down more than 100 years ago. Have a tradition but don't always rely on it.

You can't rely on your past exploits because if you do the same thing for too long and not grasp the concept of change then i'm sorry you're just fooling yourself. I'm not saying a holiday is celebrating the same thing every year, people have different ways to use general traditions that they've cooped up among themselves i'm all for that but on the other hand; if you can't accept change it's going to happen whether you like it or not. Some people want to break a tradition within their group, some die and aren't around anymore, others are tired of the same old boring stuff year after year or days whatever. The past has already happened, you can't expect the same things to go on that started in 1914 as oppose to now, it doesn't always work that way. In order to move forward you might need to break a few eggs, take a stand and do something that's worth while to you. You can still have your traditions but don't use the past to inspire you, use your imagination to make a twist and bringing old school and new school together and make it interesting. I come from a family that gets together for practically everything (at least they use to) and yet some of those traditions have become rather dull at times and they just do the same things over and over, some of it's positive and often times can be negative but there's no balance, no grasp of doing something a little different that can spice up the joint and it certainly doesn't help when you try to cram in 10-20 people in a small ass living room. Make a change, do something crazy (not hurting yourself type crazy), do things that excite you that gets their attention not to make it about you or them but because there's something worth doing that brings a new ideal way of making a tradition an adventure.

Develop your own traditions. Do something unique that only you or a group of you want to do and have fun with. A tradition for me is celebrating the day I broke my legs. It's fitting for me and since I celebrated my 10 year anniversary this past Friday on the 15th, I do it to not reflect of the bones that broke but how far I have come and doing something fun that gets my legs jumping and squatting and moving like a man possessed for adventure because 10 years ago I couldn't F*cking walk let alone jump and squat. Traditions are a piece of what's dear to you, don't always need to do someone else's traditions otherwise when are you going to come up with something on your own that truly means something. Make it your own or have family/friends do it with you because sometimes the same old things become just that and yet many people think it's magically going to have a breakthrough and all will be good as new, not gonna happen unless you do something different about it.

The Awe Of Hand Balancing

As with most real training ideals, the cool stuff are fun to learn but difficult to master. Hand Balancing happens to be one of the most purest forms of Bodyweight Training that is difficult to master because of the ability to center your gravity in a relatively unknown format for most individuals. It's a skill and a very adventurous way to build the upper body in a very athletic fashion and do different moves and holds.

Many of the old-time physical culturists were hand balancers such as Bob Jones, Maxick, John Grimek, Doug Hepburn, Bert Asserati and others but unlike the majority of them; Bob Jones was the man among men of Hand Balancing, he can do things on his hands most would ever dream of and he did it in style too. Balancing on clubs, the way he'd get into a handstand and many other things. Even superheroes have gotten in on the act like Spider-man and such. If a hero had all these abilities why can't they be super athletic; i'm sure Batman can do Handstands, Captain America, Black Panther, Iron Fist and maybe others. Athleticism comes in all shapes and sizes but Handstands especially unassisted is one of the most beautiful feats ever performed period.

To really understand Hand Balancing is to learn your center of gravity; being able to balance in the right place with the right shift of the stabilizing muscles (mainly your Core) and flexing the muscles of the body in a specific fashion. Some have an arch in their handstand, some are more straight like a gymnast and others have their arms and/or feet widened to hit that base of leverage. The concentration needs to be in pure laser-like fashion otherwise you won't be able to handle the load. I have found that I could get into an unassisted handstand if I widen my arms and shoulders because of the thickness in my upper back and hold up decently using as straight legged as possible. I still have a lot to learn but at my size (5'10 255+ lbs.) it's amazing i'm able to hold it at all, just the other day I tried Unassisted Handstand Push-ups and managed several partial ones. Will be up soon on Youtube, you won't want to miss it.

Now as far as isometrics is concerned it is by far one of the most powerful forms of training there is on the planet, many different ways to do them but what do you believe is the ultimate Isometric? From my experience and practicing countless positions I'm convinced the Handstand Unassisted & Wall Variation is the greatest Isometric Exercise. People will have a different view based on their own knowledge and experience but you won't convince me otherwise, I don't care about the structure of the body or that it's blatantly impossible or whatever. If you're willing to learn and can build a solid base, make Hand Balancing part of your training, learn the fundamentals and do something most can't do or won't attempt to do.

Training Ideals From The Dragon Ball Saga

In a cartoon, you can exaggerate practically anything from the expressions on people's faces to out of whack storylines and even how someone trains. In real life we may not be as extreme as animation is but we do have ways to push ourselves to the very limits. One thing Goku takes really seriously is how far he's willing to push himself, even those like Vegeta take it to the extreme but the big thing they have in common is making their training get into some unbelievable elements. We may not have a gravity room to do our training but there are ways to be creative in how you push yourself.

Out main hero is very inspiring in how he trains (if you haven't seen it I suggest you take up on it). He uses mainly his Bodyweight and the Enviornment around him. Even in Gravity Training he just powers out his body whether it's 20X Gravity or more than 100X. People give a bad rap about using only your bodyweight but most of those people don't know a damn clue since their dependent on their celery sticks, treadmill running, machine loving lives to make them feel better about themselves. The real training is using your natural surroundings by sprinting, swimming, lifting logs or rocks, push-ups, squats, crawling, jumping and more. You get more in connection with the earth if you train in a more natural setting. If you want to amp up your training using basic bodyweight movements such as pushing, pulling, squatting and ab work; use various resistance stuff like weight vests and ankle/wrist weights to make the load heavier and pushing your body to the next level.

Speaking of resistance type training using only bodyweight; we may not be able to use a Gravity Room to pull us down and make us push harder but we can do certain things like the vests and the weights on our wrists and ankles but there's also levels of speed you can experiment on. Slow down the tempo of certain exercises like push-ups for example, instead of doing the same speed, take it down a notch and go a little slower to really work the stabilizer muscles and utilize your whole body to move, make a count going down and up, slow down so much it takes you a minute up and down; that is brutal. Animal Movements are another outlook to move your body for example instead of the typical bear crawl; move your body in this manner but flex the body as you move not so much isometrically but enough to where you're moving at a slower pace and your whole body feels like it's being pulled down like in the Gravity Room. Be creative and train with intention.

One thing you'll notice about how hard you train is how hungry and sleepy as hell you get after a hard and adventurous session. For me I've trained so hard at times not only do I nap a little after a good solid workout but I need to eat like a beast on a mission. I sometimes bought two big sub sandwiches or had a bowel of cereal with meats, eggs and chicken depending on what i have and top it off with 2 glasses of raw milk. I even get Panda Express and have nearly 2 of the three entree dinners just to satisfy my hunger. Unlike Goku who eats everything in sight when he's hungry, I know when my body has had enough. When you eat plenty of awesome food and sleep well, you will build muscle period. Train like your life depended on it, sort of like how Goku and Krillin from the first Dragon Ball series trained by swimming against sharks, climbed steep mountains, ran carrying milk, busted their ass on manual labor and working their hands on farm fields. You don't need to be that extreme everyday but if you want the best out of making yourself stronger and better looking, train your ass off and eat when you're hungry and sleep when you need to even if its a 30 min. nap during the day to recharge but sleep between a good 6-9 hours depending on how much recovery you need. Live on simple things and not feel like you need some crazy diet that drives people nuts and forces themselves to do.

Spring Chicken Into Summer Magic

 

Spring is a magical time of year where new life is blossoming in nature, love shines throughout the land and the power of movement comes alive. It's time to reclaim your health and your strength by playing with various movements out in the crisp fresh air. Movement is where the true fun begins.

Be mindful to open your mind to new things, types of training you never experienced before; start your journey with movement and play on the grass at the park, playground, near water, in your yard or wherever you decide. Let your imagination blossom and place yourself in the mindset of learning to move. It's not easy at first and some can't always get out and do stuff due to circumstances but even then even in a wheelchair you can use your upper body to move and do something fun and exciting. When you close yourself off, your body goes with it and you won't develop the way you were meant to using the potential you can ascend.

Summer is about warmth, soaking up the sun, going to your favorite beach or pool and just live with gusto and life. Drop the tablet, put your phone on vibrate and feel the connection between yourself and the earth. Sounds hippyish doesn't it? Well maybe a tad but you will gain a more valuable asset in nature by practicing feeling the fresh air, letting that powerful scent of life bloom into your veins and get a hold of your inner being by physically moving your body in various ways; run, walk, climb, lift, crawl, swim and use your body when no one else dares to try and duplicate. Go do some Hand Balancing, dance, roll out the Power Wheel, throw around a steelbell and have a blast doing any or all of it. Train for life, not a temporary pass by just so you can remotely look like a fake supermodel. 

The most important aspect of movement is not to just practice being physical or doing cool moves; hell don't even think about trying to one up your idol, move like you're at peace. Letting the flow flourish out and remove yourself from the crap that may run in your life. Life is too short to feel all the negative B.S. Be at peace with who you are, not what others want you to be. Your life is a gift, nurture it and spring into action while living in the summer of your heart. 

Beautifully Enriched & Powerful

Why should you be condemned to a machine? Hell why really settle for a stationary area to move in? For the most part, many people in fitness rely on or are dependent being in one stationary place like they've confined themselves in a cage. It's understandable being in one position to move and you can a million different things like push-ups, squats, weights and even running in place yet the greatest thing is to be able to move around as much of your environment as possible. Unless harsh weather is a factor, being outside brings new life to your movements. Be able to crawl, jump, swing, climb, swim, balance and sprint. Machines are your jail bars and you will be very limited.

The body was meant to adapt. Unless you're recovering from injuries or are a boobybuilder, isolating the body is a bad idea. Working on one part of the body multiple times overtaxes the joints and ligaments to a degree where the rest of the body has to keep up and when they don't it'll collapse on itself. We have abilities we have yet to realize. The body is the most programmed piece of operative machinery, it can adapt to particular moves, able to withstand quite a bit of punishment and have the ability to take on some amazing tasks. Never limit yourself, find a good of variety of things that will hit you from every angle as possible.

When most start out, they don't realize how fragile they are, sure they can push a little but it's also important to know that building a foundation is a starting point in the journey, not a fork in the road like most people believe. Also when you're starting out, do not ever push past your limits the first time around or go all hardcore, I know it's exciting and you're doing something new but don't make the mistake of pushing it beyond your starting points; otherwise you will get hurt and you could possibly be paying medical bills that you don't want. Let your body adapt to what it's doing and little by little, begin that ascend on the ladder of progression.

Never settle for a one-all-be all system, when you do that, you're isolating yourself from what could really reach your peak potential but it's also important to realize that doing a million things won't get the job done either. Keep things to a minimum as best as possible and if you want to do more things in a single session, mix and match your favorite programs. It isn't rocket science but it won't be easy either, besides in order to gain through progression you can't take the easy route.

When it comes down to it, we are movement, our bodies are our guide to the world and moving through space in various ways teaches us how to journey our spiritual and physical boundaries and where it can take us if we are willing to take steps into places most are too afraid to do. We push ourselves but most of the time in the very wrong way and we end up discouraged, hurt, tied down in our minds and we end up quitting when we are just going down that road. Be playful, develop a skill, challenge the norm and never settle for modern traditions or mainstream ideals; be different and become the greatest version of yourself.