Conditioning Priorities

 Hope you all had a great 4th of July Weekend and nobody got hurt or worse during fireworks and BBQs. My weekend was pretty good, just getting in my typical workouts, playing around making random Youtube Posts from Song Lyrics to quotes from Comic Books/Movies and my own thoughts on things. Even went up into the mountains for a little while.

Yesterday, I got up and went to the park to do a Dopamineo Circuit Workout for 45+ minutes in the open air and just letting the rhythm flow. Great conditioning and keeping things mobile. Felt high as a fucking kite afterwards and went back home to chill out for a bit. Before the workout, I took some Hercules Pre-Workout Capsules with my Spark & Rehydrate mix of energy and hydration. Made the workout that much better and didn't feel a crash afterwards. Actually felt very energized.

After a while, we went up into the mountains to check some stuff out before a thing that's going on this week. Beautiful area and although I'm not the biggest fan of heights, I loved seeing the river/lake below and other mountain ranges along the valley. Being in the forest and mountains just gives off different vibes man. 

This morning, got up, had my mixture and did some Joint Loosening for a few minutes before getting into my Sapate HIIT Workout of doing 8 Rounds 30 on, 90 off. Don't know what the rest of the day will bring but I know it's going to involve some neck training with the Neck Flex. That's just part of the factors of making conditioning a priority. Being ready for what lies ahead and having the strength and stamina for even the small things. It's just the way I like things to go. 

Fitness is more than just developing a body, it's about learning your capabilities, being aware of how the body responds and letting things flow. Go hard at times, a little lighter on others and being intuitive. I never truly force anything, sure I push myself but I don't go so hard that it's going to bring a high risk of injury. I don't enjoy pain, I'm not like a Goggins or some exaggerated and baseless guru who enjoys hurting themselves in order to prove how fit they are. Goggins has some qualities when it comes to training like the admiration of seeing what is possible but what overshadows that is putting himself through agony and physical pain in order to be fit. I'm sorry but that guy is going to burn himself out or worse, be crippled in another 10 years if not less.

Conditioning should be a priority but it is also important to be aware of what your body can do. You can't be extreme forever, it's going to bite you in the ass and it may just kill you and nobody will ever really remember you, hell some aren't even that famous and act like they're better than everybody when no one cares about their fake ideals. They're just dust in the wind that comes and goes. In reality, make it a priority to condition yourself that not only makes you last but keeps you as injury proof as possible. It's one thing to try and kill yourself to see how far you're willing to go, it's another to find that balance that gives you a supply of attributes well into old age that gives you opportunities to continue the journey with vitality and enthusiasm. 

Prioritize your health, physically and mentally. Don't waste time and energy just poking the bear and scratching and clawing for attention. That's just going to bring misery, obsession and turn you into some kind of Gollum looking creature that will die a painful death in the end. Live with passion, youthful creativity and keep things simple but also fun as best as you can. There's a time and place to do what needs to be done and be serious when shit hits the fan but if you only live in paranoia, pain and living a narcissistic/bully existence, it won't end well. 

Keep at it, be amazingly awesome and never stop progressing because even the smallest fraction of it, leads to the big picture. Get a hold of me using the linktree or shoot me a comment and let's read your insights. 

One more thing, on top of being in condition, sleeping is also a priority and it's not always easy calming the mind so if you need a little help with that, come check out the Sleep Bundle from Lost Empire Herbs. Be able to recover well and be in that deep state that gets you to wake up and feeling like a new person. 

Animal Movement & Crawls: The Brain's Secret Weapon For Those With ADHD

 

Happy 4th Of July Everyone. Hopefully you're all having a blast with the BBQ's fireworks and spending time with great people. Today, I want to go over some key things about Animal Movements & Crawls that not only are useful but showcase that there's FREEDOM in being able to play while you train. Let's get this party going shall we?

Some of the advice people get in the world of those with ADHD (which I display some symptoms of but have learned to manage it without drugs or therapy) can be a circus and a pain in the ass. Just do this or that or go to Africa and see how the natives live and realize ADHD is a myth. Yes I've heard dumb shit like that and that's not how that works but then again many on Social Media think they're experts when they can't tie their own shoelaces without rambling on like the teacher from Charlie Brown. 

One of the things that actually is beneficial and gives off those relaxing vibes when the brain feels like it has dozens of tabs opened is to get on the fucking floor and move like an animal in the wild. I'm not joking man, dead serious here. Why are they beneficial? What are the reasons for them to work for those who do have focus issues?

For Starters:

For many of us and from a certain perspective, it gives what the brain craves: Input. It's not about just focus, it's the nervous system that is deeply and specifically overhyped or bored and needs stimulation. Crawling such as Bear Crawls, Crab Walks, Duck Walks and doing Jumps like a Frog dumps in what's called proprioceptive input into the joints. In other words for those trying to understand what that means, in a nutshell, basically its the deep pressure that informs the brain where the body is. 

The "heavy work" on display is what calms the system down. When you're in a relaxed state or have better focus, you're not having anxious moments like restless leg syndrome or playing the fast clicking game with your pen. You fed the brain what it needed and that's that input plus the structure. 

The Second thing is what's referred to as Training The Brakes and not just the Gas:

One of the major symptoms of ADHD is Impulsivity. It's like Doug from Up where he can talking and then out of nowhere, SQUIRREL. Attention spans are erratic so it's important to understand how we can find ways to control those impulses in order to deliver results. Take the Bear Crawl for example, learn to move, shift and be able to stop/pause on as dime. With practice, you can display Inhibitory Control which shows where you can focus in real time. 

This was figured out decades ago with kids but it also is important to help reduce the need to put those kids on medication. Because of the symptoms I displayed when I was very little from the meningitis, I was put on Ritalin until I was about 10 years old. If I was taught more how to use Animal Crawls and was taught it as play instead of just wearing me out, things may have gone differently. As an adult who has been doing this kind of training off and on since about 2008, I can tell you that although it's not 100% curable, it has helped me in ways that keep me going and helps me be focused on things that are important to me. It's not so much a disease but more of an aspect of the need for stimulation. It's one of the reasons why I love training all the time and why things change for me more frequently than those who consistently exercise. 

A Third Factor is utilizing Cross Body Movements That Cross Wires The Brain:

Movements like the Bear Crawl uses patterns of Opposite Arm & Leg. Crab Walks force greater stabilization cause variations have your hips high to look like a table. Either way, these patterns build strong connections between the brain's left and right hemispheres. What does this translate to or bring about outside of this? It helps you read better, can show greater formats of hand-writing and transition well among tasks. 

Number 4 is on Posture that Fixes The Fidgeting:

About half of the "hyperactivity" shows shitty Postural Endurance. What this means is that when the Core and Shoulders are weaker than Bob Ueker's Career Batting Average, its obvious why it's difficult to sit still. There's a lot of energy just attempting holding yourself upright. Many crawl patterns load the muscles that keep you having that strong posture. The stronger the posture, the less likely to be squirming. 

The 5-Count Pin. Chaotic Organizing....Many of those with ADHD LOVE THIS:

It can be mind numbing running on a treadmill, doing random Jumping Jacks that just make you quit after a short period of time, not because you can't keep going, but because the stimulation doesn't help much. What gives the formality of Hyperactivity being put into a container is moving like an animal. It's learning the rules while being a maniac. You have to learn to coordinate, be able to think on your feet (or on all fours) and burn all that energy since it will organize the brain all at the same time. 

Studies of Movement that even include 12 week programs showed massive drops in Hyperactivity scores when this type of training is thrown in the mix. It's not about "Just try harder" anymore. It's giving you opportunities to live life on your terms while managing something that isn't easily managed. 

In Conclusion:

Like I said earlier based on my own life and experiences, Animal Moves won't 100% get rid of ADHD. I can be an asshole and tell you to just go do 500 Hindu Squats or you'll be a pussy, but I'm not going to do that to you, what benefit do I get out of that? We may have different ways to handle this but I'm also telling you you're not alone and I want you to find the best outlet. Animal Crawls all in all, are just a tool like anything else but if you like swimming, hiking, working with a sledgehammer or go to the gym, fucking do it man. Take control of what benefits you. 

For more info on building Animal Conditioning, check out Movement 20XX by Vahva Fitness. One of the best courses around for not just building physical things like endurance and strength but to also help channel the brain so you can do tasks that are important and be able to work the capacity you need to to make a living. Most marketing scammers and "gurus" only play off courses (which are fabricated & plagiarized) to only show how to lose weight and think it's about being physical when they don't care about the mental side of it by helping others use it for mental health. They don't give a shit about that side of the fence, only to look good and have some inferiority complex. Courses like Movement 20XX show what it can do for your mental health and teach you patterns that are fun, exciting and enhance positive vibes. Also, I encourage you to check out Eero's Channel which has a lot of cool moves you can try. 

Shoot a comment here or use the linktree to send me an email and let me know what you think. 

Sometimes Going A Little Crazy Can Bite You Back A Bit

 When you get into something, it can be exciting but it's important to realize, sometimes that excitement can bite you in the ass if you don't pay attention. Guess I fell into that rabbit hole but not by much. I've been hitting up the Sapate Exercise for quite a few workouts, keeping the protocol of using it as a HIIT Workout for over a couple weeks doing 30 on, 90 off for 8 Rounds (inspired by the Sprint 8 Workout).

Yesterday, I figured I'd really test myself seeing what would happen if I did it 2 days in a row and holy fucking shit balls I paid a little price for it (50 cents maybe LOL). I did 100 of these bastards in sets of 10 with a minute rest between sets. Let's just say by the end, I wanted to keel over and probably needed an Iron Lung, that thing kicked my ass and nearly took me out. It was a wake up call on how tough this exercise can be despite the simplicity. Once everything died down and I can breathe like a normal human again, the endorphins were insane.

This is the lesson I learned: Don't push that hard and not expect to feel something. I didn't get injured or anything but there was a little feeling in my left shoulder I didn't like and I didn't want to aggravate it further doing this crazy move today. So for the next couple days, I'll be doing some prehabbing on my shoulder with the Dopa Stretch band, maybe the regular but haven't decided yet and do some Overcoming Isometric Training to keep my strength going without overwhelming the joints along with working my neck as usual. I'll be back on the HIIT train on Friday ready to kill it again.

Some of the things we learn in training is not always the victories and hitting those sweet spots, its what we learn by feel and at times we can go until our brain stops thinking and turning that Governor off in our minds. When that happens, there's a bit of unpredictability and you don't realize how far down that Rabbit hole you go until you feel either a pinch, internal bruise or a possible nose bleed (I've had all three happen on separate occasions) and you keep going without knowing what just happened. That can be the kind of thing that bites you in the ass. Some guys don't care if they get injured or not, going to extreme is like a drug to them and don't care about the consequences such as screwing up a knee or something. Don't do stupid shit like that, it makes you weaker than it does stronger.

Pay attention to what you're doing, feel that flow and keep focused on the task at hand. I'm glad I noticed it and didn't do anything to make it worse but shit happens and you do the best you can with it. Keep at it, be amazingly awesome and don't ever forget that the smallest fraction of progress still leads to the big picture. Have a great Wednesday everybody. Shoot a comment on this article my way and/or an email using the Linktree below. Let's interact. Tell me some of your experiences about possibly noticing something off in a workout.   

Like A Horse And Carriage.....One Without The Other Is Worthless

 It's one of those quotes that sometimes just can't seem to get out of your head. Karl Gotch once said this about wrestling and conditioning. It is true in a very definitive format that if you want to last, it is important to be in the shape needed not just for cardio purposes but to withstand the things that involve beyond takedowns and holds. 

In the fitness world, I take this to heart when it comes to the aspects of strength & conditioning. Not just sport but in life as well. Many focus almost exclusively on the strength part or in terms of what strength may look like from a muscular point of view. Having muscle is awesome and so is having strength, they're essential to having the quality of life that leads down a path to great things but many forget to add in the cardio aspect of those things. 

When people mention the word cardio; in their mind, its usually talking about treadmills, jogging for miles and aerobic classes. Usually from a gym stand point, you are supposed to do cardio before lifting weights and not the other way around. Not always how that works. Also, there's different types of cardio that doesn't involve a machine or a group of people doing some crazy sequence in sync to club/hip hop songs. What a lot think cardio is, its coming from what they read about or have some notion on in the gym, nothing else.

When it comes to cardio in my eyes, its things like....

500 Hindu Squats

1000 Step Ups

10-20 Rounds almost none stop of working with a resistance band

Lift & Carrying Sandbags

Swinging a Kettlebell for high reps

The Sapate for Continuous Reps or HIIT Style

Isometrics (Yes they can be considered cardio if you work it right)

Supersets with weights or bodyweight

Circuit Training

Sprinting For Explosiveness

Sledgehammer Training

All have aspects of cardio that most people miss. They go beyond what the mainstream textbook cookie cutters tell you what they believe cardio is. Cardio outside of a gym setting in certain parts are more primal and the things I listed, all have a cross over to things in real life situations. Hiking & Swimming are cardio based that have real life applications. 

Now, on the basis of conditioning....

To me and I'm sure a few might agree with me here is that it's an essential element to utilizing attributes that come together to showcase being able to last and endure situational aspects. In things like MMA, you need conditioning to last in a fight otherwise you're dead in the water faster than Quicksilver saving mutants at the Manor in X-Men: Apocalypse. In real life situations whether it's on a job or being a firefighter or cop, being in condition can be life saving and be able to get people out or rundown a suspect and be able to handle them for an arrest. 

Strength & Muscle is important, in the case of building a body of armor that can move efficiently while handling weight that is crucial. However; if your conditioning is shit, all that strength & muscle is worthless flesh. Why settle for one or the other when you have an opportunity to develop them all and sustain them for as long as you can?

Gotch also said "Conditioning is your greatest hold", in this case when it comes to workouts and utilizing real life formalities, "Conditioning is your greatest asset." Strength and Conditioning go together like a Horse & Carriage, one without the other is worthless. 

Be amazingly awesome. Get in the best condition possible in whatever endeavor and remember that even the smallest fraction of progress, still leads to the big picture. Keep at it everyone. Shoot me a comment to let me know what you thought of this article and give me your insights. Want to Email me? Go to the Linktree and you can go from there. You got this. 

New Workout Toy And Getting Some Swings In

Summer is kicking up and getting outside to train should be the norm. Doing plenty of work lately with the bands and Sapate HIIT Workouts but yesterday was pretty nasty in a good way. I got the new Haxe Fitness Slam Pad and wanted to test it out. This thing is bad ass as hell. Don't need to be hauling a half tire much anymore and it doesn't take up much space at all.

Training with a sledgehammer is about as old school as you can get and it fits into training for whatever sports especially wrestling and boxing. It even makes me think of Slim The Hammer Man Farman who was one of the last of the true old time strongmen that worked in a rock quarry for decades smashing concrete, levering hammers and bending tough ass steel. If anybody had a bone crushing grip, it was him even in his golden years. 

The Pad itself really isn't all that fancy or anything but its got tough rubber that can withstand a great beating and its not really that big so you really need to pay attention to the targeting when striking. I got a real kick out of it. The hard part wasn't even the workout itself, it was hauling the hammer and that from storage to the park, training and haul it back to the storage. My cooldown was walking back home, which isn't too far but once I got home, jumped into the shower and had a pretty awesome dinner later on that night. 

I love this shit and earlier that morning, I did joint loosening, some hip and core work on the floor and a Sapate HIIT Workout doing 30/90 for 8 rounds. Before going to bed last night, I even did my 400 rep Neck Workout with the Neck Flex. I was just on a fucking roll man. Slept hard once I went bed and woke up a little tight but didn't feel sore at all. You get out of what you put in and fucking hell it was glorious. 

People in the fitness industry has made things way too complicated and simplicity is truly the way to go. The trouble is, because something isn't shiny or overly themed, simplicity has become a lost art and it shows in these wacked out videos of influencers. Smashing a hammer on a tire or a slam pad is about as simple as you can get yet receive more benefits than doing a bunch of exercises to get a decent physique. Bodyweight wise, you don't need to go crazy, just a few exercises that you work hard on and you're golden. Fitness is about the journey and finding your place in what makes the workouts perfect for you and not trying to keep up with everybody else. We all have strengths and weaknesses, its what makes us unique and certain standards aren't meant for everybody and that's ok. 

I don't expect anyone to train like me, why would they? They have their own journey and some things are crazier and psychotic than mine is but others do far less than me and still get great benefit from it. I don't like to fucking try keeping up with anyone else. Why would I? I'm either going to surpass them, keep up or get outworked by them, but I'm not going to try and attempt to see if I could keep up with anybody, it either happens or it doesn't and there's always a lesson in there somewhere. You do what's best for you. Learn what is useful and drop what doesn't. Along the way, have a blast with it, even on days where you may feel like shit, you do what's possible in the moment of time. The only real competition is you vs you. If you're a competitive athlete, you do what's possible to beat an opponent with specific training methods for that sport but outside of that, it isn't that important to try and beat anybody just for the sake of saying "oh I'm better than you therefore you are a weak bitch" no, that's just an asshole take on things and shows how insecure you are. 

Kick ass in your endeavors. Be amazingly awesome and don't forget that the smallest fraction of progress still leads to the big picture. Have a great Thor's Day everyone.  

As always, shoot me a comment about your thoughts on an article and if you want to email me, use the Linktree below.