Flowing In The Animal World & Exploring

Animal movement is so joyous and fun to do, period. I love the crawling, the jumping, balancing and just living it up. Yesterday I went into my Animal Flow workout and just felt amazeballs without needing to move all that hard for 10-15 min. like I usually do. Just flowing around and being creative integrating transitions, travels & switches that was more slow paced but still challenging.

The ability to explore your body as it moves in different patterns isn't easy by any stretch (pun intended) and it gives you feedback on what to work on and help yourself find your weak spots to generate into strength. My animal spirit is the Ape, I'm not questioning that and I feel whole heartedly that to be true. However you move will develop what you lean towards that spirit within you. We all have one and that's the beauty of exploration, its both a physically and mindful practice that everyone should do. It doesn't matter how old you are or where you come from; unleash your instincts little by little and see what brings out the best in you. 

The urban jungle can be scary and its up to you to find out what truly makes you animalistic. I know that sounds a little philosophical but so what? Animal Movement is not just moving in various motions; it's about channeling your inner self and bringing out what makes us who we can truly be. People are being held back because of various reasons; it isn't proper, it makes us look savage, it's uncivilized whatever the case may be. I'm still learning how to be more open with who I'am because growing up, it was very difficult to show my true self to practically anyone because let's face it, I grew up around a lot of guilt and ridicule and no matter how hard I tried; something always made someone defensive, poke fun at what I was trying to do and tell me it's impolite to be open about things or in other words "hold it in or suffer the consequences" that's how I felt. 

Over the years as I step by step was coming more out of my shell things started happening for me; showed people what I can do, be upfront about things and be accepted. My training has opened up a whole other universe for me where I can be myself, have fun, live without regret. Because I grew up around a lot of guilt not because of things I've done but the people who walk on it and hearing the soles squeak, it's instinctive for me to feel that way so around certain people I shut down and parts of me become emotionally painful. That's one of the reasons why I train, it helps me be open and be happy with who I'am and little by little i'm transitioning that mindset without needing to train but always keep my focus on the very thing that has helped me survive many hardships and helps me be a better man to the woman I love in all of this world.

Whatever you're going through, find something that helps you be a better version of who you want to become, channel your pain into something glorious and creative that gives you purpose and happiness. It's not materials that help you flow through life, its what keeps you flowing within yourself and making bad ass things happen. For me it's exercise and exploring, for others it may be something else but I'm telling you, nothing gives you more of a soul search than learning about your animal spirit and unleashing it without being fearful of it. Explore your true nature and make it awesome for you.  

Animal Conditioning Using Playing Cards

A couple years ago, I was testing out my conditioning as always and I went for a deck of cards workout that was made famous by the late Karl Gotch. Normally it be push-ups and squats so often I would do the whole deck which took me no more than 45 min. to an hour. As of late I've been wanting to do the deck again but with an added twist; I decided to not do only push-ups an squats but Animal Movements.

As you may have read on my facebook page I've been killing it with the Animal Dice Game where you roll a 20 sided dye once for an animal and a second for the amount of reps/steps you take. A couple times I added in a deck of cards to make things a little interesting. Instead of rolling twice, you only do it once to get the animal and you flip a card for your reps/steps. This is pure conditioning as it's going to be in my opinion; you can say there are better exercises but this is the ultimate in randomness and having to do unexpected movements and it's never the same workout which is a good thing if you're in sports or want to amplify your stamina for manual labor, continued strength, lung capacity for running or whatever.

Shuffle the cards as you normally would; have your dye in hand and roll it for an animal then flip the card to take your steps. This workout should roughly take you around 30 min. to complete and rest as little as possible; if you need a break, do deep breathing and drink that water, never sit down. Most decks are at around 52 cards, mine has 55 including 3 Jokers. Here's the repetition scheme for your cards.....

2-10=Face Value
K/Q/J=15 Reps
Ace=20 Reps
Joker=50 Reps

So pick 20 Animals you'd like play with or get them out of a Animal Kingdom Manual or from the DVD and go from there. Have fun with it, make noises if you want; it's not meant to brutalize your training but to help you have a good time while going through something very tough. This is great for kids, athletes in sports such as wrestling, MMA, Soccer, Football, Boxing, Spartan Race ect. My personal deck I use is Here and here's a set to get some 20-Sided Dye. This is an amazing workout with no special equipment and can be done practically anywhere at anytime. I do this in my den or outside when it's warm but if I'm in a hotel room or a very small room I do what's called a Caged Style workout where you're only allowed to move in a short amount of space. I have figured out how to do animal movements anywhere so don't let anyone tell you you need a very wide range of space.

Tarzan Is Calling To Me Once Again

Couldn't stay away from my Animal workouts for long. Over the past few days I've been hearing the call from the Ape Man himself & he's making me work harder than ever before. The jungle has been nuts since he got me playing the Animal Dice Game again. With the way he's kicking my ass lately I have hit more than 40 rolls of animals; the show off over here has been warming up with even higher numbers; my highest set of rolls is at 58, that's a lot of movement ranging from 1-20 steps at a time.

Even in the last 4 workouts; 57, 58, 42 & another 42 rolls I'm feeling it everywhere and my core is just getting hit the most because of the contraction to protect my lower back from injury. The endorphin high is incredible and I love feeling really good afterwards. This is pure conditioning and can really put you in Jungle Shape, basically gaining stamina and overall body to strength ratio. Although I'm over 265 lbs; I feel like an athlete under 220 and look like i'm around 235. If you really want to burn off fat and put on real muscle, this is the ticket hands down.

As much as I love my sprints, Isometrics & Hammer Work; the animals are the top of the workout food chain at least to me when it comes down to building insane strength and endurance for bodyweight work. You don't need to do that many rolls worth of animals to get the full benefit, only 5-10 to start and 20 min. worth of work is all that's needed. How much would it cost to you to get fit only 20 min. a day and gain strength, power, stamina & speed all in one workout?

Animal Kingdom Conditioning- $127 ($0.35/day for an entire year)

Animal Kingdom Conditioning 2- $67 ($0.18/day for an entire year)

Animal Flow 2.0- $59.95 w/ DVD ($0.16/day for an entire year)

Animal Workouts DVD- $29.95 ($0.08/day for an entire year)

If you really think about those numbers, that's still under $1 a day to train for an entire year alone just learning about animal exercises and that's still cheaper than the average gym. Just one of these courses alone can save you a couple hundred bucks a year at a gym that you need to drive to, get stuck in traffic, dress into workout clothes and get ready to get on a treadmill and the weights which you might have to wait for at several minutes at a time usually. Get your greatest benefit by saving time and money on a long-term perspective. I can hear the jungle man calling to you now and letting you know its never too late to get in Jungle Shape.

Best Workouts & Equipment While Traveling

I like a lot of things that training has provided but you can't always do what you want when it comes to certain things. Traveling for example can be a pain if you had to lug a kettlebell around or in dying need of a gym that a Hotel has (if that's what they call a gym) specific equipment. That's why I believe the best traveling form of exercise is Bodyweight; can be done in your hotel room, out in the hallway, at a park or hell on a plane (yes I literally have done movements seated on a plane).

Some people would like to travel with equipment that could be useful and resourceful. When I travel I usually take only 2 specific types of equipment that are light to carry but effective regardless of where you are. That would be the Chest Expander & the TNT Cables, they have been lifesavers for me as they give me the type of training I'd like to do that can be done just as in the gym. Hook the door attachment to a door, strap the cables in and you're good to go. Basic exercises like Pulls, Presses & Squats can be done with the cables. The Chest Expander is just as awesome if not more convenient and has nearly as many exercises to choose from. 

When it comes to specific workouts while traveling, hands down Circuits. Doing these for 20 minutes is all you need to get in good shape. The Darebee Workouts work best for training in hotel rooms, waiting for a plane or wherever. I once did a workout that involved stretching & Bridging exercises while waiting for a plane at the airport. I'd rather do a circuit in a hotel room or outside somewhere where i'm staying so I don't sweat all over the place. When it comes to equipment, resistance bands are best and to me Lifeline Fitness carries the best kind and very affordable. Do workouts that are within the 15-20 min range or less unless you're on vacation and may have more time you don't need to train any longer than that. When I'm in Lake Tahoe, I take advantage of my surroundings and head down to the lake to lift heavy rocks, swim, crawl amongst the rocks, climb ladders of the docks and anything else that suits my imagination. 

I get it some like to use a gym and maybe some may need it like Pro athletes or musicians, entertainers or whatever but for the most part unless you're a bodybuilder, powerlifter, strongman you don't need to go to a gym while you travel. Have some imagination. If you got a good small amount of space; you can do some crazy training. Since me and my girl are heading to Disneyland for her first trip to California we'll be walking the majority of the time but in the hotel, mostly calisthenics & resistance training will be used but at the parks in line for rides; Isometrics baby. Push, Pull, Wall Sit, Squeeze & flex in various positions as you stand in line. Be open minded and be resourceful with what you have. Use the environment and use your imagination and you'll never ever need the gym again. Value what you have and make use of your surroundings. Don't make excuses to not train. 

Why Cram It When You Can Spread It

One of the fascinating things about Fitness is not only the variety but the mixture of exercises put together. Now I'm not one to be fiddled routines and on occasions I put myself into only one workout for the entire but for the most part; I like to dabble with exercises throughout the day. The reason why for that being done is because sometimes one workout just isn't quite enough or I won't have a usual time to train everything I need to do.

Some folks can only do one workout within the day because that's all they can do which is understandable; job, family, emergencies, unexpected circumstances whatever the case may be you only have this much time to do what's important. I like to look at things from another perspective; doing exercises throughout the day may have some value you may not realize. Not everyone has an hour to exercise to the gym or even at home at times which is believe it or not perfectly ok. I would normally get my training in by the afternoon after promoting or hanging with my girl but at times when I travel or i'm out of my element in another person's home and I would sometimes have to improvise.

I do my best to teach you that when you can train anywhere at anytime there's more to it then just being able to get something in within those factors. As the title implies, you can do things throughout the day but in increments instead of just cramming everything into one specific set of time. Here's an example; in a little over a week i'll be in California for a family gathering and since i'm not there that often, things can get chaotic with me seeing everyone and going all over town and to other cities/towns within 30 mile radius my training won't be exactly the same and I won't always have the time I need to train the way I normally would. That doesn't mean I stop doing what I do, just spreading things out with exercises here and there to get going with the chaos that happens there. My exercises mostly contain push-ups, self resistance, stretching and Isometrics plus the occasional squat but overall I just do enough exercise to where I can get a few minutes in throughout certain areas of the day. Because of this trip, I'm doing what I feel is right for me to do and train even for a couple minutes before something crazy happens and if people give me looks or think something negative; their issues not mine.

Training throughout the day may sound taxing and exhausting but as Doc Brown would say "You're not thinking 4th Dimensionally" but with the right level of intensity and keeping reps down to only a few and the exercises only a few; it can keep you energized the entire day. Wouldn't it be cool to feel giddy & high on endorphins? Being able to stay active without fatiguing and enjoy the vibrations of your body's electrical feeling? It can even help calm your nerves with the right exercises and doing things without people noticing you. Be open to ideas and doing what's important for your body. Give yourself an opportunity regardless of time that your body matters and staying fit doesn't have to be complicated but a gift to have the chance to do something down to the smallest fraction. Make it work for you and not against you, be your own trainer.